Ghostly White
by Marylaand
Summary: When the band moves to their band house, in 2003, they have no idea of what that house hides... (new cover image)
1. The House

**_18_****_th_****_ July, 2003: 1.43pm _**

It was one of the most beautiful houses on Princess Park manor, and Tom and Danny almost didn't believe they were going to live there until they had Tom's blue Mini parked in front of their new house.

The two boys carried their bags inside, and dropped them on the hall, looking wide eyed at their place. It seemed like somewhere perfect to get inspiration, to live and have fun. A perfect place to be happy, and make dreams come true.

Tom Fletcher dropped his guitar case on the floor carefully. His pale skin and blonde hair glowed against the vivid red of his t-shirt, and his brown eyes sparkled when he thought about showing the band house to his girlfriend, Giovanna. They had met when they were thirteen, but an insignificant fight broke them apart, although Tom had never stopped loving her and had eventually won her back just a few months before. Giovanna was Italian (everyone could tell by her tanned skin, long curly brown hair and dark brown eyes), and she was on holidays with her family in the meantime. Tom wanted her to see what she meant to him. He played music for her. He wrote songs for her. He had gotten a band and a record deal for her. 1526 High Road was the proof of everything he felt for her, and thinking about what he had achieved made his chest swell with pride.

Danny Jones took a deep breath, feeling the summer air filling his nostrils, and he was happy for not being regretting his indumenta choice for that day: a white t-shirt and three quarter shorts. He received strange looks from Tom when he took his sunscreen out of one of the bags and sprayed it in his hands, covering his nose and cheeks with it. Danny didn't really care. He just didn't want his skin to get all burnt and red, due to its incapacity to get tanned, and only produce lots of freckles all over Danny's body, which he hated. He and Tom exchanged looks, as they smiled, thinking about a bright future doing what they loved the most. Right before sprinting upstairs, of course.

After the first flight of stairs, a long corridor turned to their left, with three wooden doors: one at the right, one at the left, and the other one was in the end of the wall. Tom and Danny got in the room at their right, which had to be the master bedroom, because it was insanely big. It had bright red walls, a small en-suite bathroom at their right, a big bed with red covers, and a black desk.

Danny moved towards the wall in front of the bed, which had what looked like two closet doors, but one of them had a little interrupter. He shrugged, opening the doors, but he couldn't really see anything, as it was too dark inside, despite the noon sunlight, shining through the windows. He frowned, and pressed the interrupter he had seen, being greeted by a walk-in wardrobe.

'Tom! You have to see this, mate!' He yelled with the excitement. Tom appeared from behind him quickly, surprised by the size of the wardrobe. He walked in, smiling, touching the white walls of the compartment. Danny walked in too, but his smile disappeared from his face when he saw a hanger at the back of the tiny room, with a black clothe-bag. '_The house was supposed to be new' _, he thought.

'Let's see the other rooms, Dan!' Tom called him. Getting out of the wardrobe, Danny closed the doors and followed Tom to the other room at the left. This one was smaller, but still amazing. It had light blue walls, a bed at the right, and a full body mirror next to the light brown wooden desk and a closet matching the light brown floor, and light blue curtains.

'The good thing about this, Tom,' Danny said as he opened the curtains and inspected the view, 'is that Harry's not here, and we can choose the best rooms before him.'

'I know, right? By far, my favourite is the red room.' Tom replied, getting up from the bed.

'Yeah, mine to.' Danny said. 'Wanna check out the room at the end of the hall?'

'Yup, let's go.'

The last room of that floor was the smallest in the house, but it wasn't bad at all. Tom and Danny concluded the last member of McFly would take that room. They still needed a bassist.

The second floor only had a bathroom and two similar spare bedrooms, ideal for friends or family staying in on special occasions.

The attic consisted in the second biggest room of the house, with white walls, and a blue one, a big (and comfortable bed, as they noticed) bed, and a huge balcony, bringing sunlight to the entire room, which lead to the rooftop of the second floor. Danny opened the balcony door carefully, moved to the bar in the edge and looked down at the garden.

'Tom! Tom! We have a pool!' Danny screamed. Tom chuckled at the enthusiasm of his friend, and went outside too.

'So, what room do you want, Dan?' He asked.

'Uh, well, I still prefer the red room. But this one's pretty good too.' Danny replied.

'Alright, this one's mine, red room is yours. Harry and our bassist will get the smallest rooms.' Tom laughed, looking around the balcony and thinking it was a perfect place for a romantic dinner or a cheesy serenade with Giovanna.

'Tom?' Danny turned to him, with his arms hanging out of the protection bar.

'Yeah, Danny?' He asked, copying Danny's position.

'We are going to be the most awesome band ever.'

'I know.'


	2. The Weird Glow

**A/N: Thank you so much for the positive feedback! It means a lot to me. This is the second chapter, strange things start to happen here. I don't really know when I'll update, for now I have to study for tests, but I'll try to do it as often as I can. Also, you can check my other story, 'You Know It'll Be Okay'. Well, enjoy! My replies to the reviews on the previous chapter are in the end :)**

**_19_****_th_****_ July, 2003: 2.26am_**

Tom turned off his night table light, tucking himself under the covers. Turning to his left side, with his back turned to the wall, he closed his eyes.

It hadn't been more than fifteen minutes, and Tom was jolted to full consciousness again. Although they were in the middle of the summer, the room had suddenly become incredibly chilly, and he felt some kind of light burning his eyes.

The door.

But he hadn't left any corridor lights on. Frowning, he got up, grabbing a hoodie on the way to the door, as it seemed to get colder and colder by the second, and looked along the hallway. The tiny interrupter next to his room's door was turned off. A white light appeared at his right, frightening him. He blinked, and rubbed his eyes, but the light had disappeared.

Scratching his head, he looked behind him at his bed. Tom wasn't exactly the biggest fan of the dark, and being up and seeing weird things at night often gave him insomnia and panic attacks. Suddenly, he wanted to go back to his bed, and hid under the covers- the only place he thought it was safe, but he just couldn't. The silence was frightening, and made his head buzz. Tom shivered at every little nerve contraction, waiting for some strong hand to grab him by the ankle or tap his shoulder. Or for that strange light to appear again.

Taking a deep breath, he takes a step backwards, entering further in his room. Slowly, but surely, he was walking back into his room. He laid on his bed, pulling the covers over him, hiding his head.

_There was something at the window._

The weird glow was revolving around the window, bringing the coldness back to the division. Tom had thought everything was alright under the blankets, that nothing could ever hurt him, as long he didn't have any part of his body out of the bed until the sunrise.

Unfortunately, this time, Tom felt anything but safe.

**_19_****_th_****_ July, 2003: 11.57am_**

'You overslept, mate.' Danny grinned, as he poured some milk to a blue mug. 'You slept well?' He asked.

Tom frowned as he noticed how Danny was in an incredible good mood, and even more as he realized he had, in fact overslept and woken up _after_ Danny. The brunette was happily preparing breakfast for Tom and himself, still wearing an old t-shirt and boxers, as it was his habit only getting dressed after breakfast.

'Yeah, I really like my room.' Tom replied, sitting in one of the chairs. Danny placed two plates with toast and two mugs of hot milk in front of each, and they both started to eat. 'Danny?'

Danny took his eyes off the toast he was currently eating. 'Yeah?'

Tom blushed, looking down. 'Did you, uh, turn on any lights after I went to bed?' He knew it was a silly question, as Danny had gone to bed before him, but he _needed_ answers.

'No. Why would I do that?' Danny finished his toast, and got up to put the plate on the sink.

'Uh, yeah, you're right.' Tom started to drink his milk.

'I'm always right, Tom.' Danny smirked. 'Because I am so smart.' Tom rolled his eyes, smiling.

'Yes, you are so smart you even asked James if the Statue of Liberty was a man or a woman.' The blonde teased in a sarcastic tone.

'Well, yeah, I'm not smart when I'm drunk. Nobody is.' Danny faked being upset. 'And you always use that against me, Tom. It's not fair.'

'Life's not fair.' Tom laughed.

'Is Fletch coming today?' Danny asked, changing the subject.

'Yeah, but he's only coming in the afternoon.' Tom answered. 'Why?'

'Race to the pool?' Danny challenged him. Tom didn't even have time to answer, as Danny sprinted to the backyard, and jumped to the pool, only a few seconds later. Tom shrugged, following his best friend, with a smile on his face, and more importantly, forgetting about the weird glows haunting his mind.'

**_19th July, 2003, 18:17pm_**

Tom picked up his blue towel from the pool chair and started to dry his back. After so much stress with buying a new house, cleaning and tidying it up, Danny and Tom thought they deserved a day off, so they had stayed by the pool since the morning, promising themselves to try and work on some songs in the following day. Both felt like little kids, playing in the pool on their own. The Summer could bring back so many good memories. 'Only hot girls are missing here' Danny thought. The sun was starting to set, and from the balcony above the backyard, they had stayed about two minutes admiring the great view from the whole city.

'I'm getting a sandwich from the kitchen! You want one?' Tom asked Danny (who was still in the pool) as he put his wet flip flops on and left the towel drying in the sun.

'Yeah, with Nuttela, please!' Danny yelled back from where he was.

Tom walked to the kitchen, trying not to wet the floor the best he could.

Halfway through Danny's sandwich, he noticed he had forgotten the butter knife to put Nuttella in the bread. Picking one up from one of the drawers on the cupboard, he returned to the kitchen table. Leaving the small knife resting on the counter, he opened the Nuttella jar, smelling the inside of it and feeling the pleasant scent of chocolate fill his nostrils. Tom was going to get the knife, so he could finally finish Danny's sandwich and return to the pool chair to relax, but the knife wasn't there anymore.

'What the-' Tom started to wonder, but his thoughts were interrupted by the kitchen door, who slammed loudly, and the lights started to go on and off intermittently. The emotions from the previous night returned to him, and he could swear he felt his heart skipping a beat. 'Fuck, fuck, fuck.' He thought, unable to move. The kitchen door opened.

'Gotcha! Haha, this one was so funny! You should have seen your face!' Danny laughed, the butter knife in his hand, obviously amused by his prank. Tom only seemed confused.

'But it was... you... you were...' The blonde stammered, looking back and forth between his friend and the door.

'I got in behind you, and I decided to hide in the tiny closet over there.' Danny pointed to a wooden door next to the cupboard. Tom closed his eyes, taking deep breaths, and Danny frowned. 'Tom? Are you okay?' He asked unsure, coming closer to his friend.

'Okay? Okay?! This was not funny at all, Danny! Jesus, you really act like a little kid sometimes!' Tom yelled, looking now angry.

'What- what did I do? I was just teasing you-' Danny started to explain. Tom pinched the bridge of his nose, as if his head was hurting.

'Look let's just- let's forget this, okay? There's your sandwich.' Tom sighed, shuffling back to the garden, not feeling quite ready to enjoy the last few hours of sun.

**_19th July, 2003, 23:47pm_**

Tom was feeling guilty because of his little outburst some hours before. He didn't even knew why he had reacted so badly at just an innocent prank he normally would consider funny. Ever since those weird glows the day before, he had been incredibly jumpy.

Tom believed in everything there was to believe: superheroes, villains, spirits, aliens and ghosts. After being given some 'proofs' of the existence of ghosts (Tom couldn't shake the feeling of something unusual in that house, despite his honest tries to be reasonable), Danny's prank had scared him so much he was almost peeing his pants. He had been quiet for the rest of the evening, trying to figure out what was going on in his head.

'Tom? Tom, are you listening to me?' Danny asked, feeling urged to wave his hand in front of his friend's face, as he seemed do unresponsive.

'What? Sorry, I was thinking...' Tom apologized quietly, running a hand through his hair.

'Are you still mad at me because of that think in the kitchen?' Danny wanted to know. 'Look, I didn't mean to scare you or anything- well, I actually did, but the point is-'

'No, Danny, it's okay, really. And I'm sorry for acting like I did after that. I didn't need to yell at you like that.' Tom blushed, embarrassed with his previous behaviour. Danny nodded.

'Anyway, I was saying I was going to go to bed now. Curious how a day at the pool can make you feel so tired.' Danny chuckled. 'Are you going too?'

'Yeah.' Tom looked down. He really didn't want to go to bed on his own. Biting his lip, he watched Danny climbing the stairs and turned off the TV. 'Danny?' He called in a small voice.

'Yeah, mate?' Danny turned around.

'Could you-um - sleep with me tonight?' Tom asked shyly, blushing and feeling like an idiot. The brunette smiled warmly.

'Sure you can. Your bed or mine- oh God, this sounded wrong!' They both burst out laughing. For a moment, Tom forgot about ghosts, aliens, glows and spirits. For a moment there, everything seemed to be okay again.

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Thank you so much! I love the way you always give feedback on everything. I'm sure every author here loves your support :)**

**NeonDouche: Haha, comedy and romance are awesome! But who doesn't love drama and mystery? Thank you so much, and I'll try and update as soon as I can :)**


	3. The Dream

**A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, they make me really happy! The replies are in the end of the chapter. Here's chapter 3, I know it's a bit rubbish, but I've been really busy with school stuff, and I'm surprises that, even updating this often I am having nice grades. Well, enjoy :)**

**_20th July, 2003, 3:26am_**

Tom woke up in the middle of the night suddenly to the sound of something banging against the wall.

Danny was sleeping soundly next to him, half tangled in the red blankets, and seemingly unaware of how cold the room was. Paralyzed in fear, Tom watched as the door opened and revealed the same weird glow he had seen the night before. This time, it was whiter than the previous time, and it had some kind of shape, big enough to occupy a human form. Although whatever was glowing was in front of Tom, he was feeling someone watching him from behind. The blonde wanted to move, but he couldn't. The glow made his head hurt, as if it was slowly damaging his eyes, but Tom couldn't bring himself to stop looking, scared that somehow it could hurt him if he closed his eyes or turned away. The thought of waking Danny up crossed his mind; however, something inside him stopped him from doing so.

In about a millisecond, the door slammed shut with such intensity that Tom felt the bed shake, and Danny shift beside him.

'Wha's goin' on?' Danny whispered groggily, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

'There was some-'Tom was going to start his explanation about the ghostly glow, alien, or whatever it was, but then noticed Danny had strangely fallen asleep after a few seconds. Tom took a deep breath, feeling a strong shiver run down his back, and grabbed Danny's wrist, so he could feel safer, and maybe, just maybe, sleep for the rest of the night.

**_ 25th July, 2003, 10:14am_**

'Hurry up, Danny, he will arrive any minute now!' Tom called from downstairs. Danny rubbed his eyes, regretting have drunk so much the previous night as he felt his headache getting more and more intense as he got up. Harry would arrive today from his holidays with his family, and they couldn't wait to have the complete band living in the house.

Danny walked in his wardrobe, looking for his favourite t-shirt. The black cloth bag was still there. Danny hadn't remembered that since the first day at the house. He picked it up, and started to open it. It was probably a silly idea, the bag should be empty, but Danny soon concluded he was wrong. Inside the bag, there was some kind of black cloth with light blue bits, like it had been entirely blue once, but had been burnt at some point. Frowning, he took the cloth of the bag and examined it. It looked like a dress. An old, dirty and burnt dress. And strangely enough, the smell indicated that it had been burnt recently.

'DANNY! GET HERE NOW! BREAKFAST IS READY!' Although his headache was really bothering him, Danny chuckled at how Tom could really sound like his Mum, when he called him to go eat.

'It won't be a minute!' He replied. Looking one last time to the weird dress, he walked out of the room, deciding not to tell anyone about it, as he was sure simply thinking about what he had found would bring him scary nightmares.

Tom was feeling great today. The perspective of your dreams slowly coming true can help you seeing life in the most positive way. It wasn't only because of Harry's arrival he was feeling so well. He was in a good mood, because he had slept better than he had in weeks. It had been five days since he had seen the weird light in his room. He had to admit it was really strange, and he didn't have an explanation for that, but he wasn't scared anymore. Tom truly believed things would start looking up now, especially with the 'thing' out of his life. Danny shuffled to the kitchen, rubbing his temples and still wearing his boxers and an old t-shirt.

'Do we have aspirins?' He moaned as he sat on a chair, and crossed his arms on the table. Tom rolled his eyes, handing him some tablets and a glass of water, getting a muttered 'thanks' as a reply.

'You'll have to change after breakfast. Harry is going to bring loads of stuff from his house, and we'll have to help him, and after that, we need to go to town and pick a whole drum set, because the one he has is rubbish, and I'm thinking about getting a new guitar, because-'

'Please, please shut up Tom, I'm not in the mood at all. Just leave me alone for ten minutes, and then I'll be good and fresh to start the day.'

'Okay, okay, Mister Grumpy, I'll leave you to it.' Tom smiled, sitting down next to the brunette and eating his toast. Danny looked up, half frowning, half smirking.

'You look extremely happy today.' He commented, and Tom shrugged. 'Giovanna wasn't here last night was she?' Danny smirked, a perverted grin on his face.

'I just slept really well last night, and I feel great.' Tom took another bite of his toast, smiling wider.

Tom and Danny had their busiest day since they had moved to the band house.

Harry had arrived at about ten in the morning, carrying, as Tom had predicted, a high number of boxes with clothes, drumsticks (filling almost an entire box!), posters, books, CD's, his laptop, and other things he had at his old room in his house, and the three boys tidied up the room until lunch time, deciding to leave the rest for later. After eating, they went to the nearest music shop, where they spent the whole afternoon choosing Harry's new drum set, while Tom picked a new guitar (as a late birthday present for himself).

**_25_****_th_****_ July, 2003, 17:48pm_**

'God, how many CD's do you have, mate?' Danny asked, surprised with the ridiculous amount of records his bandmate possessed. They were just doing the final decorations in Harry's room, planning to set Harry's drums later, in the music room. On the floor, there were only a few boxes left to unpack, all of them filled with CD's, including Blink-182, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Guns N' Roses, The Used, The Beatles and other rock bands Harry liked. Tom was piling up the records on Harry's desk, trying not to occupy the whole table (which he didn't succeed).

'Oh, I forgot this one.' Harry picked up one of the boxes from the floor, which contained a few more t-shirts. He was going to start and put the rest of his clothes on his wardrobe, but Tom stopped him.

'Let me handle that, and go help Danny with your records. If you want to have all of them tomorrow, that is. I swear Dan is the most accident prone person I've ever met.' Tom advised, and Harry nodded, rushing to Danny's side. Tom started to take the t-shirts of the box and pile them up in Harry's bed, and opened the closet, discovering a small drawer inside, close to the floor, and perfect to fit the t-shirts.

As he opened the drawer, he felt a shiver run down his back, and cold air coming from the bottom of the wardrobe. Pushing away some of his friend's jeans, he discovered a small black book. Tom looked at Harry and Danny (who were having a deep conversation about their musical idols) to check they weren't looking, and took it off the closet. The cover was entirely black, and thought it could be a diary. Frowning, he put the book on his jacket's pocket, and decided to examine it later. And surely, his fear of whatever was in that house, was coming back.

**_26_****_th_****_ July, 2003, 5:26am_**

Silence. Not even the buzz he had felt before was there, and Tom was sure that if a water drop fell a kilometre away, he would hear it. For a second, everything was dark, but the scenario changed to a long corridor, with candles on the wall, emanating dim light, at least enough for Tom to see himself in the mirror at the end of the hall. He didn't know why, but he was walking towards it, unsure of every step he took. When he was about a meter away from the mirror, he realized how rotten the corridor walls were, and how the mirror was so filthy. Something clouded his ears, making him hear wind-like sounds inside his head. Hearing footsteps behind him, Tom wanted to look behind, but he couldn't. Focusing on the mirror, he saw it.

There was someone behind him.

He closed his eyes and opened them again. He was alone in the hall. However, in the mirror, there was a little girl in front of him, smiling. It wasn't an innocent smile, though. It was the kind of smile people did after knowing they had enough power to make the others do whatever they wanted. She was wearing a perfect blue dress that went down to her knees, black doll shoes with white socks, and she didn't look more than a nine year-old. She wasn't ugly at all, although Tom thought she had something sinister on her. Her pale blue eyes looked dull and lifeless, and her dark, straight hair bounced lightly as she moved her hands to the mirror.

The silence returned, and everything blacked out for a few moments again. The corridor where he had been just seconds before was mirrored, and the reflection of the girl stared at him. But his own reflection wasn't there anymore.

Waking up, Tom's heart was beating so fast, it was making his chest ache. It was still dark outside, but Tom wouldn't feel safe in bed anymore either, so he got up from his bed and went to the garden in the backyard with a notebook and a pencil, and started to draw some flowers. Lilies.

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Good to know you have enjoyed it! It's good to know that someone's actually reading this. Thanks!**

**NeonDouche: Oh, supernatural experiences... I've had a few ones too! Like weird shadows and other little freaky things that make me stay awake at night. Well, Harry's already here, and Dougie will come on the next chapter, or maybe on the fifth one, I still haven't written that yet. I'm glad you're enjoying it! **


	4. The Friendship

**A/N: Hello there! Thanks for the reviews, I really apreciate them. Now, I'm sorry if this chapter had grammar mistakes or some details don't make sense, but I've been a bit ill, and just too tired to check, but didn't want to stop updating until I got better, so... yeah. Oh, and the replies to your reviews are in the end of the chapter, as always. Enjoy!**

**_26th July, 2003, 8:15am_**

Harry stared at the ceiling of his new room in the band house. The house that belonged to his band.

He had woken up a while before, probably because of being happy and looking forward to spend another day with his band mates. The previous day had been one of the best days of his life. There was still a lot to practice, he knew, a lot to be done, but Harry couldn't feel better about his life at the moment.

Feeling ready to eat and start the day (his stomach felt the same), he got up from his bed, smiling, putting a dark blue t-shirt on and keeping the boxers he had slept with, he went downstairs, the sensation of walking in the carpeted floor still being new to him. Getting in the kitchen, he noticed the door to the backyard was open. Harry walked over in order to close it, but when he was doing so, he spotted a figure shivering, half sitting, half laying on the grass, near one of the pool chairs. Frowning, Harry came closer to the person, soon realizing it was Tom, and that he was holding a notebook, and a pencil was lying near him. Tom was asleep, curled up on his stomach, but he didn't seem comfortable at all.

'Tom? Wake up, mate.' Harry shook his friend's shoulders, taking the notebook off his hands and picking up the pencil. Tom stirred and opened his eyes, looking frightened for a second when he saw Harry in front of him. 'What are you doing out here this early?' Harry asked. Tom rubbed his eyes.

'I couldn't sleep. So I came here and started to draw those lilies over there.' Tom pointed to some bluish flowers, yawning.

'That's really weird mate. I mean, I understand you like to draw and everything but... I don't know, at least you could do it inside the house.' Harry stated, lifting his right eyebrow.

'I, uh... get more inspired outside. And it's really hot inside.' Tom replied, getting up. 'Let's get some breakfast, I'm starting to get hungry.'

'Okay, let's go, then.' Harry had sensed Tom was quieter than usual, and he couldn't help but feeling that something wasn't right.

**_31th July, 2003, 11:52pm_**

'So what did you want to talk about earlier?' Danny asked, as he sat on the poll chair. Tom had already gone to bed, claiming he was too tired, which Harry and Danny believed, seeing the dark bags under his eyes, and the way he had acted during the day, barely having energy to think, playing games or work on songs. Ever since Harry had found him in the backyard that morning, he got worried about him, so when Tom had gone to the bathroom, he had told Danny he wanted to 'discuss a matter' later, without Tom.

Danny hadn't liked the idea of having a talk to Harry. It wasn't because he didn't like the drummer, but he just didn't trust him enough yet, so, although he had agreed on talking to him without Tom, he was feeling ready to cut him off if he tried to say something bad about his best friend. At that point, Tom and Harry had got on better than Danny and Harry had, mostly because of being so different: Harry was from a posh, rich family in Essex, while Danny had been born in a small town in Bolton. Harry was witty and sarcastic, had a huge amount of vocabulary, accompanied by a posh accent that annoyed Danny a little, and the Boltoner laughed at the simplest jokes and got his grammar wrong most of the times. It was a shame, Tom had thought, that they had no idea of how much in common they had, like both being into sports, the experiences they had of putting up with older sisters and being the youngest in their family, and the popularity they had had in school.

Harry sat on one of the pool chairs in front of Danny. They had agreed on going outside, as it was really hot in the house.

'It's about Tom.' Harry sighed, his blue eyes fixing Danny's greyish ones. Danny clenched his fists and came closer to Harry in a defensive motion.

'If you are here to talk rubbish about Tom with me, then, let me tell you, I'm not the right person.' Danny squinted his eyes, starting to look angry.

'No, why would I say bad things about Tom anyway? He's a really nice guy, and he seems funny.' Harry replied, looking confused. 'It's about something that I've been noticing. He's been very tired and, I don't know... he just doesn't seem as happy as I once saw him. I... is he normally like this? Or have you seen anything weird about him too?' Danny's expression softened and he felt relieved to know the drummer actually cared about Tom.

'You're right Harry. No he's not always like this. His normal self is happy and he used to be always writing songs. He barely writes anything with me these days.' Danny sighed.

'Do you think it has something to do with his family?' Harry suggested.

'I don't think so. His folks are really nice people, besides Tom would have told me something if that happened.' Danny said.

'But there's clearly something wrong with him, and he didn't tell you anything.'

'You have a point there. I'll ask him tomorrow. I hope it's nothing too serious.' Danny smiled sadly at Harry. They stared at each other for a few seconds, creating an awkward silence.

'So, Harry... do you like football?'

**FLOYNTERXxx: Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying! And thank you for reviewing, means a lot to me! It's mostly the feedback that makes me want to write more and more. About the story, I think I'll make Tom keep his little secret and suffer with it (yup, things are about to get worse!). Just so you know, I have the story planned, but if you have good ideas, PM me or leave a review! Ideas always lead to other ideas, and ideas lead to inspiration! **

**Galaxydefender49: Don't worry, more freaky stuff will come in the next chapters! Thanks for reviewing :)**


	5. The Conversation

**A/N: Hello! Thank you again for the lovely reviews! I posted a new story, you might want to check it out, it's called 'When You've Got Everything (You've Got Everything to Lose)', and I don't have a cover image for it yet, so for now, the image that appears is my avatar, which is an auto portrait I did. I really like to draw. Anyway, the replies to the reviews on the last chapter are in the end of this one. Enjoy!**

**_1st August, 2003, 2:03pm_**

Tom picked up the black book he had found in Harry's closet from the top of his wardrobe. The cover was hard and shiny, making a low, annoying noise whenever Tom ran his fingers through it. Opening it, he saw the pages were of a brownish yellow colour, looking old and stained. Or burnt. Turning the pages in a swift motion with his thumb, he saw the book was entirely empty.

Tom had seen the girl more than once since the first time. And it was always the same dream, the same hall, the same mirror. And each time, Tom would wake up shaking, whimpering, or falling from the bed, preventing him from sleeping for the rest of the night. Of course, the lack of sleep was taking its toll on him: he barely laughed or spoke to Danny and Harry anymore, he didn't want to go out anymore, besides being extremely touchy.

The only positive thing he could take from those nightmares was the inspiration he was getting to write songs. All the melodies he came out with were slow and a little sad or dramatic, but they were good. They didn't sound like his normal poppy, happy songs. No, those were so much different.

The way the little girl influenced his song writing was scary. Various times a day, his mind would be flooded with negative thoughts, like death, suicide, and doubt.

Sighing, Tom dropped the book on his desk and went to the music room. The music room was where they were supposed to write their songs and practice them, even though they did most of the song writing in other places, like Danny's room, or near the pool. '_Meaningful places give you inspiration'_, Danny had said.

The room had four guitars (two acoustic ones and two electric ones) hung on the wall, a bass and a drum set in the centre, a keyboard, and, in the left corner, a desk with a computer, where Danny liked to work on their demos. Tom went to the keyboard, taking his lyric book and a pencil with him, and, after taking a deep breath, he started to play a soft melody, stopping occasionally to take notes of the chords, and thinking about some lyrics.

After about two hours, Tom had done a three minute instrumental song. Sighing, he closed the lyric book. He had so many emotions inside of him, but none of them suited the somewhat haunting melody stuck in his head. In some sort of way, what he had written sounded like a beginning. He felt like it had to be continued. Leaving the lyric book on the top of the keyboard, Tom got up, deciding he would have a snack and then continue his song.

In the living room, Danny and Harry were watching some movie on TV, and turned their heads instantly at him when he was going to the kitchen.

'What have you been doing, Tom?' Danny asked, smiling. 'This movie is really cool; you could watch it with us.' Tom shook his head.

'No, thanks Dan, but I'm not in the mood for movies.' Danny's smile dropped. 'I've been working on a song, and I'm just taking a break.' Tom left without further answer, ready to go back to the music room after grabbing a doughnut. When he was halfway through the stairs, a voice stopped him.

'Tom?' He heard Harry ask.

'Yeah, Harry?'

'When will Dougie arrive?'

'In four days.' Tom sighed. His friends couldn't ever remember anything. Dougie Poynter would be their bassist, but, because of some late auditioning and family problems, Dougie would only arrive two weeks later than Harry. Tom climbed the rest of the stairs to the first floor and wasn't really surprised to notice how colder the room was comparing to the rest of the house. That had already happened a lot, whenever he dreamt with the mirror and the girl.

He was going to sit on the keyboard, when he heard the computer turning on with that usual annoying music. Tom frowned. He hadn't turned on the device, had he? Gingerly, he walked towards the computed and sat on the chair. Not even touching the mouse, Tom watched as a Word document opened, apparently, on his own accord.

Tom was truly scared now. Hyperventilating, he felt his head spin, and a wave of nausea hit him. Clenching his fists, he was now sweating from everywhere, looking at the monitor in front of him, actually waiting for something.

'Please don't be a ghost, please don't be a ghost, please, please...' He prayed, as he crossed his fingers, hoping to feel a tiny bit safer. And, for his horror, the words started to write themselves:

_'What are you scared of, Thomas? I'm not even alive'_

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Is this good enough for the spooky stuff you wanted? Haha, I really had fun writing it, and there's a lot more to come! Thanks for reviewing, it's always nice :)**


	6. The Reflex

**A/N: Hey, everyone! Thanks for the reviews on last chapter! The replies are in the end of this (what a surprise)... Enjoy! And review, please, if you have ideas or just want to leave feedback, okay?**

Tom looked at the computer screen in front of him, the written words flying through his mind. Gripping the arms of the chair tightly, he tried to calm himself down, at least to a point when his head was not spinning. He closed his eyes and opened them again, just to find the same words staring at him.

Tom was shaking by now, and very hesitantly, his hands hit the keyboard.

_'Are you a ghost?_' He typed, covering his eyes with his hands, feeling the cold sweat on his face.´ Slowly, more letters were appearing on the Word document.

_'I think you know what I am, although you do not want to accept it._' Looking at the answer he had got somehow made him a bit calmer.

_'Why are you talking to me?_' Tom asked, the fear of before coming back slowly as he expected a reply.

_'You do not have to know now. Just keep in mind that I am always here_.' Just as Tom finished reading the sentence, the computer screen went black. Panicking, Tom tried to turn on the device again, clicking the power button various times, without a reaction.

Tom was ignoring the fact the entire situation seemed surreal, the existence of ghosts and the nightmares he had. When he had been 'communicating' with the girl on his computer, Tom had realized what most scared him was he could be going crazy. He was trying to turn on the computer one more time, fearing he had lost the evidence he was not inventing things, or that he was not schizophrenic. What Tom feared the most was for his independence. Because he could lose it, if he tried to deal with the 'ghost' without thinking rationally, he could be stuck on his nightmares forever. Unfortunately, he would only realize much later, he had been losing his independence ever since that first night at the now haunted house.

It had been twelve minutes, and Tom was staring at the monitor, his face with an emotionless mask. The room wasn't cold anymore, meaning the she wasn't there anymore. It was easier for Tom to think about the ghost as a she, he believed the girl in his dreams and the glow he had seen were connected somehow.

Getting up, Tom walked slowly to the keyboard and sat down again. His legs had gone numb. Opening his lyric book, Tom played the song he had written before, but he didn't stop in the end. The song continued with a slightly darker tone, going to dramatic harmonies, returning, in what Tom believed to fit as the end of the song, to the initial soft melody. He picked up his lyric book, and wrote the words, which would be sung in the darkest bit of the song. He thought about writing down the chords to the new part, but he didn't need to. The haunting melody was stuck in his head, and wouldn't be coming out soon.

After practicing the song a few more times, Tom decided he would try to turn on the computer again. Hitting the power button, he waited, but he did not have a reaction.

'Come on, come on...' He pleaded, almost slapping the device.

At the third time, the monitor was turning on. Tom quickly sat on the chair and waited, as it restarted like it normally would.

The Word document had not been saved, but he did not think it would hurt to try and hope for a miracle. He was not surprised when he didn't found his 'conversation' with the ghost. He turned off the computer, and looked at the black screen, staring at his own reflection. He blinked once. In front of him, his reflection wasn't there anymore. His blonde hair, his brown eyes and dimple had disappeared. Instead, the same girl looked at him, moving her head lightly and smiling, always with the same mysterious smile. Her pale blue eyes penetrating Tom's, and her pale hand touching her dark brown hair.

For a few seconds, the image in front of Tom switched to a similar girl, but this one had a healthy looking skin tone, freckles, dark vivid blue eyes (resembling Danny's), and curly dark hair. She was even wearing the same blue dress, but, not like the other one, she looked absolutely terrified.

'Tom?' Tom's head turned to the door, where he saw Danny.

'Yeah, Danny?' He replied, his voice shaking.

'I was just calling you to dinner, the pizza arrived.' Danny frowned, taking a look at Tom's face. 'Are you alright, Tom? You look pale, and you've been weird today...' Danny came closer to his friend, touching his forehead. 'You're not warm...'

'I am fine, Danny, really. Let's eat, okay?' Tom assured him the best he could, and both boys went downstairs.

**FLOYNTERXxx: I have the whole thing planned up in my head, but if you have any ideas you would like me to fit in this, leave it in a review, it always helps! Dougie will show up in the next few chapters, I don't really know when... Thanks for reviewing :)**

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Oh, thank you so much! Hope you like this chapter, thank you!**


	7. The Fire

**A/N: Hello! Thanks for the good feedback I've been getting on all of my stories (it's the better feedback I've ever got anyway!). I've finished one of my stories, but I'm still writing other three! Check them out if you want. And please review, if you have ideas you want me to fit in any of the three stories.**

**_5th August, 2003, 3:26am_**

The mirrored view of the rotten hall and the girl in front of him was now as familiar to Tom as seeing Danny and Harry every day. However, he still felt as scared and horrified as he had felt for the first time, if not worse.

After having the exactly the same nightmare for days and days, and even twice in a single night, Tom was expecting to wake up after being given a few moments to look at the corridor in his dream, and eventually try and fall asleep again, praying for no more nightmares.

Tom thought he had woken up. After all, he could see his room with the faint light coming from the hall outside the room, and he didn't feel sick or dizzy as he used to when he was stuck in that dream.

Noticing how dry his mouth was, he decided to go get a glass of water. Tom frowned. His body did not seem to answer his mind's orders, and he started to panic when he realized he was not able to move. Tom was trying to scream for help, but once again, he felt stuck in a paralyzed body. His eyes watered with fear, and he scanned the room back and forth, as if trying to find a way out of his problem.

Suddenly, his nose detected something. It was like someone was frying potatoes under his room, as the smell came from under his bed, probably in Danny's room or wardrobe. But who the hell would fry potatoes at half past three in the morning? Concentrating, Tom paid more attention to the smell. It could also be something burning, like a fire. As soon as he contemplated that situation, he started to hear screams. Pained, heart wrenching, high pitched screams, as if someone was physically torturing a small child. Tom would scream. Tom would get up, and try to see what was happening. Tom would try and tell his best friends that their house was on fire, and that he was hearing screams, but he couldn't. Crying harder, he heard the cries getting worse, and then stopping eventually, as the smell of smoke was getting more and more intense, and the room got gradually colder. Exhausted, he fell into a dreamless slumber.

**_5th August, 2003, 12:41pm_**

'It must be him! I'll go open the door; you try to get Tom to get up!' Harry ordered when he heard the door bell ring.

'Okay, mate. I'll go down later to help you guys bring his stuff upstairs.' Danny replied, running to the third floor.

Tom's room was still dark, and he was still sleeping, in a rather strange and unnatural position, lying down as if he was inside a coffin, his members stiff, and his face too peaceful. Danny and Harry found weird that Tom had not got up before them (as it was usual), but had decided to let him sleep, wanting to believe that there was a possibility the blonde's unusual behaviour had its origin in lack of sleep.

Danny walked to Tom's bed and shook his shoulders. Slowly he woke up, frowning and looking around the room confused.

'Good morning sleepyhead.' Danny smiled, sitting down on the end of the bed. 'Dougie just arrived, Harry is helping him downstairs. Did you sleep well?'

'Da... Dan...' Tom winced at how much his throat hurt. He felt like he had been yelling for ages, or like he had been rehearsing nonstop in the previous day.

'What's wrong with you voice, Tom?' Danny asked. 'Are you feeling ill?'

'No, it's just my throat...' Tom whispered, swallowing painfully. Danny's face lit up suddenly.

'I could make you some of my mother's special tea! It always helped me when I had sore throats.' The brunette got up. 'Stay there, I'll be right back with your tea.' He smiled, happy that he could feel useful, as he was majorly good in few areas, like singing, playing guitar, sports and (surprisingly) cooking.

Tom sighed and lay down, not feeling quite ready to face the day. The girl hadn't talked to him since the computer incident, but the nightmares had never stopped. But Tom remembered every single detail of the previous night. Waking up from the dream, not being able to move, the smell of smoke, the screams. He didn't even know if it had been real. It was like... his body was still sleeping, but his mind was awake. Bur surely, his inaudible screams had taken the toll on his vocal chords: Tom felt like someone had burnt them from the inside.

Danny entered in the room, carrying a tray with a steaming mug with tea, and an aspirin. Tom sat up on the bed, taking the tray of Danny's hands and placing it on his lap.

'Thanks.' He mumbled, smiling at how much Danny always cared so much about people.

'Anytime, mate. Now, drink the special Kathy Jones' tea, rest and get better, alright?' Danny smiled as well, getting up. 'And don't worry about Dougie, Harry and him are sorting his room out and everything. Fell better, Tom.' And he left Tom with a mug of tea, a sore throat, and deadly scared to fall asleep ever again.

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Haha, thanks! Well, the computer is the freakiest thing that happened until now, so it's one of my favourites too. Hope you like this chapter!**


	8. The Family

**A/N: Hello, everybody! Thank you for all the lovely reviews, specially from FloynterXxx and LeilaTheGalaxyDefender, your support has been amazing! I'll update my other stories soon, I promise. In this chapter, you have a bit of Dougie's point of view, and in the middle it kind of jumps to a few hours in the future, but it goes back to the time in the beggining. Enjoy, and please review:) Oh, and you'll have another Authour's Note in the end, as well as the replies to the reviews.**

**_9th August, 2003, 4:26am _**

Tom woke up and looked around his room. It had been the second time that night he woke up after the usual nightmare, and, deciding it was enough, he got up, put a hoodie on, and went to the music room, hoping the post dream state would give him some inspiration to write or draw anything.

It was still very dark outside the house, and everybody except him was sleeping, so Tom walked around carefully, observing everything around him like it was the first time in there, feeling like it would be better to check everything out.

After all, Tom had got used to see unnatural things recently.

He still had no clue of what had happened to him some nights before, when he was awake, but couldn't move. So instead of playing music, Tom moved towards the computer and turned it on.

He opened a tab on Google and put his hands on the keyboard, but he found himself having no idea of what to write. After a few moments of thinking, he wrote 'paralyzed body during sleep' on Google's search bar and clicked Enter. Lots of results were immediate and the first one was a Wikipedia page named 'Sleep Paralysis'.

Tom clicked on the link and started to read.

_'Sleep paralysis is a phenomenon in which people, either when falling asleep or wakening, temporarily experience an inability to move. More formally, it is a transition state between wakefulness and rest characterized by complete muscle atonia (muscle weakness). It can occur at sleep onset or upon awakening, and it is often associated with terrifying visions (e.g. an intruder in the room), to which one is unable to react due to paralysis. It is believed a result of disrupted REM sleep, which is normally characterized by complete muscle atonia that prevents individuals from acting out their dreams. Sleep paralysis has been linked to disorders such as narcolepsy, migraines, anxiety disorders, and obstructive sleep apnea; however, it can also occur in isolation. When linked to another disorder, sleep paralysis commonly occurs in association with the neuromuscular disorder narcolepsy_.' He read, in a murmuring low voice.

It made sense for Tom. Maybe, with everything that was going on, the amount of stress he had had caused his sleep paralysis to happen. Tom looked back at the screen, but the Wikipedia page wasn't there anymore.

Another Word document.

_'Nice to talk to you again Thomas_.' He read. Taking a deep breath, he wrote too.

_'Why do you keep talking to me?_'

_'I want you to do something for me._'

_'What do you want from me?_' Tom typed, before hearing a soft bang behind him. A black book had fallen from the top of one of the shelves. Shaking, Tom got up slowly from the chair and picked the book up, taking it to the desk where he sat down again. Closing the Word document and the Wikipedia page, Tom opened the little book, and, unlike the previous time he had checked, the yellow pages weren't empty.

There were two old looking pictures on the first page. The first one was a family portrait. A tall blonde man with blue eyes, wearing a suit with an arm draped around a shorter brunette woman's shoulders, who was looking down at two little girls. One of them was shorter, and looked about five or six years old, had short blonde hair and big brown eyes, and was smiling at the other girl. Tom felt a shiver run down his back upon seeing the other girl. It wasn't the same girl from his dreams. It was the other scared looking girl he had seen. Only she was smiling in the picture, wearing a blue dress, and her dark hair curlier than ever, like she had spent the day running around and playing.

The second picture had really bad quality. It was a picture from a house on flames. Behind the iron gates, Tom could see a translucid figure, smiling evilly. The little girl, the one that haunted his dreams.

**_9_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 9:47am_**

Dougie smiled and leaned his back on the sofa next to Harry and Danny. It had been two days since he had arrived to the McFly band house, but he was already getting on incredibly well with Danny and specially Harry. Tom had seemed nice enough to him in the auditions, but he had been really distant and quiet in the house, rarely joining the others except while eating and writing songs. Dougie thought Tom was probably having some sort of family or relationship problem at the moment, and hoped they could become good friends eventually, like what was happening with Danny and Harry.

Dougie also loved being in the house. It was a nice escape from his own family problems. Nothing had ever been the same since his father had left two months before: his mother and sister were always sad, and did not have much, as Sam Poynter's job wasn't exactly a well paid one. Now, being in a signed band would mean Dougie could actually help his family, give them a better life, while he escaped the hard times at his house while working in what he loved the most: playing bass. So Dougie thought he had a good reason to be especially happy that day.

'It's Doctor Who!' Harry exclaimed, putting his cereal plate on the coffee table as he payed more attention to the TV.

The episode was almost finishing when, suddenly, Dougie saw a piece of paper fly across the living room and landing on his knee. Danny and Harry didn't seem to notice anything. Frowning, he picked it up. The paper was old looking and yellow, and a single sentence was written on it.

'_From now on, you can run, but I'll always find you_.'

**_9_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 5:32am_**

Tom closed the book, shaking, and put his head in his hands. The whole situation was getting out of control. He had been receiving clues and signs and more clues and more signs, but he couldn't really find the connection between them.

By now, he was pretty sure he wasn't imagining things, and that the girl was a ghost. But what else? For some reason, she had stepped into his life and changed him. Tom felt more different than he ever had before. Besides not having smiled once in the previous weeks, he felt tired and grumpy all the time, like nothing was worth it. Not even the band. The nights were definitely the worst. Because he, an eighteen year-old, was scared of falling asleep.

He opened the book again, and studied the picture of the fire once again. Some of the trees were scarily familiar to him, and only after some minutes of observing, Tom realized the house in flames was the band house. Looking back at the picture above, he noticed something had been written under the picture, but he was sure it hadn't been there before.

_'Catchpole family, August, 1924'_

The date would explain the bad quality the pictures had. Tom glanced at the photo with the house in flames, and turned the page. Unexpectedly, the second page wasn't empty either. It had old looking newspaper news with a medium sized headline.

_'House set on fire with girls inside by schizophrenic parents in North London'_

_'Last Friday, 30th November, the Catchpole family house was set on fire with two children inside: Lilith May Catchpole and Rose Catherine Catchpole, of eleven and five years old respectively. Some unidentified neighbours reveal that they saw Edith and Dean Catchpole, parents of the little girls, running away from the house, looking neither scared of desperate at the fact their daughters were dying inside their house. The police caught them about three miles away, and they are both waiting their trial. Unidentified sources revealed that both adults have schizophrenia, which would have caused their behaviour. One of the girls, Rose, was found dead, in the kitchen, while Lilith's body was nowhere to be found. The funeral is going to be next Saturday, 6th December._'

And then Tom remembered: the smell of fire some nights before. The screams, forever recorded in his head. But only one voice had been heard. Tom didn't know why, but he had a feeling it was Lilith's. The girl he was seeing everyday in his nightmares.

**A/N: The sleep paralysis is a real phenomenon. I had it once, and it's awful. It's, well, like Tom says in this chapter. Basically, your mind is awake, but your body is still sleeping, and you usually hear voices and see weird things, it's extremely scary.**

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: I think the spooky stuff gets clearer in this chapter. But more is yet to come! Hope you enjoyed it, and thanks for reviewing :)**

**FloynterXxx: It will be mostly Tom having the scary experiences, but the others will have a bit of it too evntually. Thank you for reviewing :)**


	9. The Request

**A/N: Hello everyone! Thank you for the reviews in the last chapter, I know this is not very big, but great stuff is planned for the next ones, so keep reading, please! Enjoy this one, and review, please :)**

**_9_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 10:29am_**

Dougie observed the paper stuck in his fingertips, noticing how curly the letters were, and how a love poem could be written there instead of that random, mysterious and scary sentence.

Danny and Harry were as if the TV had hypnotised them, not even realising a paper had flown across the living room and landed on Dougie. That single sentence had been enough to scare Dougie, but he still wanted to understand what was happening. He held the piece of paper tightly with his left hand, tapping Danny's shoulder with the other hand.

'Danny, haven't you seen it?' Dougie questioned him.

'Seen what, Doug?' Danny asked, half smiling. Harry turned to them, trying to understand what was going on.

'The paper. A paper just went across the room, coming from nowhere.' The little blonde explained, opening his left hand in order to show his friends his discovery. However, in his left hand, were lying nothing more than ashes.

**_9_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 5:41am_**

Tom closed the black book, sighing, and put it inside one of the drawers on the desk, as he was sure no one would open them. He yawned loudly, the recent discovieries had worn him out, and looked at the red watch in the wall of the music room. The whole band would have a meeting with their managers, but it would only be after lunch, so Tom thought it was fair enough that he had some time to sleep. Just as he was going to turn off the computer, he felt a shiver run down his spine, making him wince. Once again, the room had become incredibly cold in just a few seconds, and the window opened, making a scary creaky sound. The cold air of the morning hit him in the face, along with something that flew to the other side of the room. Tom closed the window slowly, and moved warily to the tiny thing that had entered the room. At first, Tom thought it was just some piece of plastic or something that belong to the neighbours, or even a piece of their pool chairs, as it was small and white. He came closer, and picked it up. It was soft and small, and looked like a hospital bracelet, turned inside out. Tom turned it the right way, and noticed there was small name tag on it, written in black, handwritten letters.

'Marie Hills, 665' Was written on the bracelet. On the other side of it, there had been printed what Tom guessed to be the hospital name, 'London Central Hospital'.

He wasn't sure how or why the bracelet had flown to the house, and, more importantly, to the room where he was, as if the window had opened itself on purpose, just to let the bracelet get in. Eyeing the item one last time, he chucked it in the drawer, where he had put the balck book, just a few minutes before.

When Tom turned back to the computer in order to turn it off, he noticed another Word document was open. Sitting down, he gripped the mouse with his right hand, afraid of what was going to happen next. Tom was sure he would never get used to communicate with a ghost through a computer, somehow he felt she was right there with him, just clicking the keyboard as he read the words. Not unexpectedly, a sentence appeared slowly on the white screen.

_'I think we're making some progress here, Thomas._' He frowned, trying to think about what she meant with that.

_'I don't understand.'_ He typed.

_'You're not dumb, are you? Think of it this way: what do you think the ghosts that áre stuck on Earth wish the most?'_ Tom looked at the words, breathing heavily. Once again, more words appeared.

_'I'm expecting an answer this time, Thomas. What do you think I wish for the most?_'

_'Coming back to life._' Tom typed, somehow secure about his reply.

_'I see you're smart_.'

_'What am I supposed to do?_' Tom wrote. He wasn't sure about the ghost's nature. Tom had a feeling she exactly a kind being (if it is legitimate to consider a ghost as a being), but he had many doubts about what she wanted him to do.

_'I gave you clues. I'm sure you can figure it out._' And, like it had happened before, the document closed itself, and the computer turned off on his own, leaving Tom staring into the black screen, his mind trying to think about everything at once, but not being able to focus at all.

**_9_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 10:31am_**

'I don't understand... It was right here!' Dougie exclaimed in a low voice, looking at the gray, dirty ashes in his hand, from what he believed to be a piece of paper with a somewhat scary sentence written on it.

'What do you mean, Dougie? What was right there?' Harry asked, now genuinely concerned. Dougie looked back and forth between the palm of his hand and Harry.

'Nothing. Forget it. I'm probably just too tired.' Dougie lied. He didn't know why, but he heard a little voice, in the back of his mind, telling him it was better if he didn't say anything. After all, he thought, it was even better if he could forget it.

**deeplyinloves: Thank you so much! I hope you liked this chapter :)**

**Neon Douche: God, it is scary! The one I talked about in the previous chapter happened to me just a few days ago, when I was waking up from a nap in my dad's office. I was looking at him, watching him work, but I couldn't move or talk or scream. Then I started hearing some whispers coming from under me. It only lasted a few minures though. I'm glad you're liking my story, I hope you like the next chapters, a lot more is yet to come! Haha, and all of them will have to face the ghost in later chapters, for now it's just Tom and Dougie. Thank you so much for reviewing :)**

**FLOYNTERXxx: Well, I need to stop writing these chapters before going to bed! Thinking about this so late at night terrifies me, but helps me think about terrifying stuff to fit into the story! I'm happy you liked the last chapter, hope you enjoy this and the next ones :D**


	10. The Clone

**A/N: Hello, everyone! This chapter explains a lot of the story! But freakier stuff is still to come in the next chapters, maybe in the twelfth, or later. Hope you like this one :)**

**_10_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 9:34am_**

Tom went downstairs, already dressed and ready to go out.

With the hospital bracelet in his pants pocket, he was planning to go to the London Central Hospital, hoping to find some answers about 'Marie Hills', whoever she was.

When Tom was reaching the door handle to open it, he heard a voice from behind him.

'Tom? Where are you going?' Danny asked confused, standing on the top of the staircase, still wearing boxers and an old navy t-shirt.

'I'm... I was going to Giovanna's.' Tom lied, nervously running a hand through his blonde hair.

Giovanna was living in a small apartment, in the other side of the city, while she was studying drama in college, and Tom would sometimes take some time to visit her. However, with everything that had been happening to him lately, ever since she had got back from her holidays on Italy, the couple had only managed some quick phone calls, with her doing most of the talk. Tom actually felt guilty for lying to Danny, but something stopped him from telling him everything, the truth, and also for not having spared time for his girlfriend, her childhood best friend.

Danny smiled a little, and walked downstairs, closer to Tom.

'Have fun.' He whispered cheekily in Tom's ear, leaving to go to the kitchen, from where he yelled 'Don't forget to use protection, though!' which made Tom chuckle. It felt like ages since the last joke between the two of them.

Taking one last look at the hall, Tom went out, closing the door behind him.

**_10_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 10:07am_**

Tom moved towards the receptionist, who was answering a phone call quietly. Looking around him, he could see the waiting room of the hospital wasn't too full, but he could hear some noise coming from a door which he assumed to be the entrance to the Emergency Room by the white letters on the door.

The blonde receptionist hung up the phone and placed it on the table in front of her, and looked at Tom.

'How can I help you?' She asked, in a calm voice tone.

'I...uh...' He started, unsure of what he was going to say. 'In what room is Marie Hills?' He asked, his voice cracking in the middle of the sentence. She turned to her computer, and then back at him.

'Are you any family member?' The receptionist asking, her voice serious.

'I'm her cousin.' Tom lied. She frowned, and looked back at the screen.

'She's in room 665.' She stated. 'Don't take long, though. From what I read here, she needs to rest.' Tom nodded.

'Thank you.' He took the elevator to the sixth floor, mentally preparing himself for what was coming next. Tom wasn't sure how exactly visiting 'Marie Hills' was going to help him, but he had decided to give it a try.

The room 665 was in the end of a corridor, which was the reason why Tom had to walk almost ten minutes before finding it. The wooden door was closed, and figuring it would be stupid to knock, he slowly opened it and got in.

The white walls made the small room look like some kind of Heaven, along with the white cupboards and the white bed sheets. In the middle of the bed, was lying a small girl with pale skin and short dark hair. Her face was hidden by the blanket that was covering her eyes, and she looked like she was sleeping, so Tom gently pulled the blanket back to her chin in order to see her features entirely. She opened her eyes slowly. Big but pale blue eyes stared back at him, seemingly unfocused. Tom stared back, with a horrified expression in his face.

_Marie Hills was the exact clone of Lilith Catchpole._

Tom was expecting the little girl to back away from him in fear, or start screaming, or at least talk to him, but she stood there, unresponsive. It was like she was sleeping, but with her eyes open. '_Maybe she's dead_.' He thought. '_Or blind_.'

'Uh... Hello?' Tom waved a hand in front of her face softly, but she kept still, like a statue. He noticed a file case on her bed side table, and assumed it probably contained information about her medical history. Looking at both sides, and checking no one was about to come in, Tom picked up the papers and read through them, finding her identification documents.

'_Full name: Marie Evelyn Hills_

_Birth Date: 30__th__ November, 1992_

_Parents: Grace Evelyn Hills (died in 1993) and Nathan David Hills (died 1993)_'

Tom skipped some pages, trying to find out why exactly she was in the hospital, and something caught his attention on the last page.

'_1__st__ May, 2003: Deep coma, induced by unknown factors._'

Tom felt his hands sweating madly, and upon cleaning them in his jeans, he heard a loud bang on the white cupboard at his right. Getting up, he walked towards it and opened one of the small white doors. It was empty, apart from a black book that was in there, similar to the one he had found in Harry's room, if not the same.

That wouldn't be exactly normal.

Would it?

He grabbed the book and opened it. It was, undoubtedly, the same black book that was supposed to be in the music room, hidden in one of the drawers. The first two pages still had the pictures and the news about the fire, but the third page was no longer empty.

'_The Life Enchantment_

_Used to bring dear ones back to life, always needing to sacrifice someone else, preferably, someone who looks like the person you wish to live again (close age, similar physical appearance, same familiar situation). In order to perform this enchantment, you must have had any kind of contact with the ghost-'_

Tom had stopped reading. He didn't need more answers, and didn't want more. Just like that, Lilith had given him all the information he needed to find out what she wanted him to do. He was going to close the book and go home, but, before he could do it, the page turned, and he saw letters, a curly handwriting appear on the old pages.

'_Is it now clear for you what you have to do? You're in too deep now. You have no escape. Try to run away and your loved ones will suffer.'_

Tom's legs buckled under him, and he fell to the floor, sobbing.

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Glad you liked it, hope you like this one too! And thanks for reviewing :)**


	11. The Pneumonia

**A/N: Hello there! I hope you are understanding the story, after what happened last chapter. If not, this one should clear everything for you. Thank you for the lovely reviews! Replies in the end of the chapter, as always :) Enjoy!**

**_12th August, 2003, 2:56pm_**

Tom looked at the TV, unfocused, not really paying attention to the movie they were watching. Danny, Harry and Dougie had managed to convince him to relax and come out of the music room for a little bit, hoping they could have his friend back to normal, even if it was just for a few hours while the movie played on the flat screen. However, Tom was completely out of it.

It had been two day since he had visited Marie Hills in the hospital, and he hadn't stopped thinking about the mess he was in since then.

It could be considered blackmail. either he did the 'life enchantment' (which was basically murdering Marie Hills, as Tom had realised), or his _loved ones_ would suffer.

Upon reading those two words, _loved ones_, Tom had taken a moment to think. images of his parents, Debbie and Bob, his sister, Carrie, Giovanna, Danny, Dougie and Harry had flown through his head, and he felt his heart twist painfully when the realisation of what Lilith could do to them hit him.

The days seemed now to pass slowly, every second seeming like an hour. More and more time to torture himself imagining how Lilith could hurt his loved ones. His familiy, Giovanna, and the band had suddenly aqquired a whole new meaning to him, now that they were in danger.

Lilith hadn't shown up to Tom in a few days, but Tom found himself wanting her to talk to him. Maybe to clear things up. Would she be capable to harm Tom's loved ones? Tom was somehow hoping she would show up once again and tell him she was joking, or that she just wanted to scare him, and that she wasn't really expecting him to kill an eleven year-old girl.

Tom wanted to run away. He hadn't exactly ignored his problem, as he thought about it every second, but he hadn't done anything about it either, locking the black book in a drawer upon getting home two days before. And, as he had noticed, nothing was happening. Every night, he would phone his parents, and everything had been just fine. Tom hoped maybe, just maybe, if he could ignore Lilith, maybe he didn't have to become a murder or watch his loved ones suffer.

Maybe, if he pretended she didn't exist, his life would return to normal.

**_13th August, 5:57pm_**

'So tomorrow, we'll try and put together some of the new songs so we can finish this album, and we'll have rehearsals Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Saturday, you'll have a free morning, but we'll do a photo shoot in the afternoon, and Sunday afternoon we'll have a meeting with Richard, Tommy and the other producers to discuss the singles of the album. Alright, boys?' Fletch asked. Dougie, Danny, Tom and Harry were sat on the round table, on a usual Monday reunion with their manager, who could talk for hours. After this meeting in particular, Danny and Dougie were nearly sleeping, with their head resting on their hands, which wasn't much different from what happened usually.

'Yeah, sure.' Harry replied, sort of waking Danny and Dougie up, and Tom nodded.

'Well, I have to go now. See you tomorrow. Please behave, okay? Oh, and close all the windows. I heard it will be really cold tonight.'

**_14th August, 1:26am_**

Lost.

Maybe he was having a lucid dream? It was night, he was sure of that. And nothing looked exactly real. Tom didn't know exactly what he was doing, but it wasn't like he could control it. His legs were moving on their own accord, and way too fast for his eyes to see what was happening. Only blurry images crossed his mind, blinding him, and he could hear an occasional scream, then everything would go silent again, like someone had put cotton inside his ears. His legs were climbing down the stairs to the first floor, and the screams were more high-pitched, seeming closer. His hand touched something cold, and suddenly he could see properly.

He was in Harry's room. And he was opening the window. When he did, he felt the cold wind blowing directly into his face, but it wasn't like the room was freezing already. Moving towards Harry's bed, he saw Harry's legs tangled on the blue blankets. Tom held the end of the bed, pulling the whole bed to the empty spot right next to the window.

The open window.

Straightening the bed against the wall, Tom saw Harry was still sleeping. He had always been a heavy sleeper. What he didn't see, though, was Lilith, with her blue eyes sparkling, and her smile wider and more evil than ever.

**_14th August, 7:50am_**

'What the fuck is that?' Danny said sleepily as he rubbed his eyes, sitting up in his bed. The two of them had slept together that night, as Danny had suggested, 'in honor of good old times', and Tom had accepted, just to make Danny happy. Tom had heard it too. It seemed that someone was having an asthma attack, wheezing like a fish out of the water. He freed himself from Danny's arms and walked to Harry's room, from where the sound was coming from, being followed by Danny.

It hadn't been a dream. And he was frozen, without moving, looking at the scene in front of him. There was no sound anymore. Only millisecond flashbacks of what he had done running through his brain.

'Oh my God? Why is his bed next to the window? WHY IS THE WINDOW EVEN OPEN?!' Danny yelled, running to Harry's side, who was, indeed, having an asthma attack while sleeping.

'Tom! Tom, he's burning up!' Danny panicked. 'What do we do?!' But Tom wasn't even moving. Tom wasn't even there. 'TOM! STOP BEING AN ASSHOLE AND ANSWER ME!' Danny ran towards Tom and slapped him hard across the face. The blonde didn't actually react, only blinking.

'Call Fletch, Danny.' Without realising, Tom had tears streaming down his face.

'Fletch?' Danny asked unsure.

'And Tommy too.'

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Glad you're understanding everything, hope you like this chapter, and thanks for reviewing :)**

**FLOYNTERXxx: Haha, thanks, it's the first ghost story I've ever written, by the way. Thanks for reviewing :D**


	12. The Messages

**A/N: Hello there! Hope you enjoyed the last chapter. This one's more like a filler kind of thing, but anyway, enjoy and review!**

**_14_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 11:27am_**

'How... How did this happen? I told you strictly to close the windows! And how... why was the bed moved to the wall? The wall right next to the window? I just... this is unbelievable!' Fletch paced around the living room, in front of the sofa where Dougie, Danny and Tom were sat.

Danny had decided to call Tommy, who got in the house within fifteen minutes. Tom and Danny had helped him to bring Harry to Tommy's car, and the manager sped up to the hospital. When Fletch arrived, they woke Dougie up and they all went to the living room, trying to explain their manager how had that happened.

'I swear I have no idea how his bed moved! And I don't believe it was him? I mean, he wouldn't do something like that, would he?' Danny stated. Tom looked down, playing with his fingers. Fletch turned to him.

'What do you have to say, Tom?' He asked. Tom usually had his opinion, and wanted to contribute, mostly because he usually knew what was going on, and he could actually help. Fletch trusted him, and understood he was kind of the leader, and the band's speaker person in what concerned that kind of matters. But this time he couldn't talk. He did know what had happened. But how could he explain it to everyone?

Tom didn't even know if he could say it was him who opened the window, and put the bed next to it. It was weird to explain. It was like he had someone else's soul stuck in his body, preventing his own mind to interfere with that complicated connection. His soul had been a mere witness.

'I really don't know. Sorry.' Tom replied, blushing. Fletch groaned in frustration.

'Alright. I'm done. We'll just... just forget this.' He said, trying not to yell. They all turned their heads at the main entrance, as the door opened, revealing their tour manager, Tommy, who was half carrying Harry. Danny and Tom immediately ran to Harry's side, helping him get to the sofa.

Harry's cheeks were pink with the fever, and he didn't seem to have the energy to walk or to stand, lying down upon arriving to the sofa. Dougie got a blanket and covered Harry with it.

'How is he?' Danny asked, sitting back on the sofa, stroking Harry's hair affectionately.

'He has double lung pneumonia.' Danny, Tom and Dougie gasped when they heard, Tom feeling even guiltier. 'It's pretty serious, but the doctor said he would be fine within two weeks, as long as he took care.' Tommy continued.

'Well, Tommy and I have to go.' Fletch said, walking towards the door. 'Please don't leave him near any open window, and call if you need anything.' And with that, the two managers left.

Harry was fast asleep on the sofa.

'I don't understand this.' Danny lowered himself to the couch next to Harry. 'How was the window even open? It doesn't make sense...' He scratched his head. 'And the bed...'

'Maybe he was hot and decided to sleep near the window?' Dougie suggested, shrugging.

'Yeah, maybe... We'll talk to him when he's awake and feeling better.' Danny replied, still feeling confused.

Tom couldn't take it anymore. Watching one if his best friends laid up in bed with pneumonia, that being his fault, and the other two trying to figure out the strange phenomenon of the house was being too much for him.

'I think... I think I'm gonna go to my room.' Tom got up and climbed upstairs. Upon arriving to his crib, he slammed the door and threw himself to his bed, groaning in frustration.

His fear had become real. He could not ignore it. He could not pretend she did not exist. She was well real. And Tom had to obey her.

Taking a few deep breaths, he got out of his room, going down the stairs to the second floor, to the music room. He shivered, feeling the familiar coldness in the division.

Tom searched in his pocket for a few moments before taking a small key, and opened the drawer where he had put the book just a few days before. But, for his surprise, the drawer looked empty. Tom frowned in confusion. He was sure he had hidden the black book right there. Opening it further, he saw two pieces of paper. Tom grabbed them and observed. They both looked like they had been ripped from the book, having the same colour, and being the same type of paper. One was an entire page.

_'Before you start searching for my book, you will have to learn what I'm capable of. Then you will have all the time you need to do your task. After all, I cannot simply ignore the fact you have been trying to block me. As I said, I am always here, and you can't run away anymore._'

Tom crumpled the piece of paper nervously, his hands shaking. Hesitantly, he picked up the other piece of paper, the smaller one.

'_From now on, you can run, but I will always find you._'

**FLOYNTERXxx: Haha, glad you're enjoying this! Good feedback always motivates me:)**


	13. The Accident

**A/N: Hello there! Sorry for the late updates, this week it might be kind of irregular, because I'm doing some workshops in an design university, but I'll try my best anyway. I hope you like this chapter, and please review :)**

**_14th August, 2003, 9:32pm_**

Tom hummed the melody of the song he had written a couple of weeks before as he turned the kettle on.

Lilith had not shown up since the previous night. 'The calm before the storm', he had thought. After all, she had implied Dougie and Danny also had to 'suffer', and it had taken a while for Danny to assure Tom they would be okay in the living room while Tom prepared some tea for Harry.

Because Tom was dead scared to leave either of them alone.

'Dougie suggested watching a movie.' Tom heard Danny's voice behind him. Putting away the kettle, Tom turned around. Danny was by the kitchen door, holding three different DVD boxes, his face opening in a sad smile, a light reminiscence for Tom of Harry's state, and how it had taken its toll on Danny and Dougie. Tom tried to smile too, but he didn't look happier than Danny.

'Sure. Which one?' Tom turned back to the kitchen island and poured the hot tea in a white mug. He felt Danny come closer to him.

'We were thinking about _Monsters CA_, but Doug wanted to know if didn't mind. He really likes the monsters, you see.' Danny explained calmly, as if the movie choice was as important as a war declaration.

'Everyone loves the monsters.' Tom smiled wider. He picked up the mug and placed it on a tray, along with Harry's tablets, and made his way to the living room with Danny.

Harry was lying in the recliner sofa, his cheeks reddened from the fever, wearing his grey hoodie and sweatpants, one of Danny's beanies, and he was covered in blankets until his waist. He smiled weakly as Tom gently put the tray on his lap and took a sip of his tea.

'Thanks.' He said, his voice sounding hoarse and tired. Tom pulled his beanie back a little and placed a hand on his forehead.

'You have a fever again.' Tom sighed, and Harry was going to reply but he broke into a sudden coughing fit. 'Take your tablets and try to sleep, alright?' Tom told him.

Danny and Dougie observed in slight amazement as Tom took care of Harry. He just knew what to do in almost every situation. Sure, he could panic sometimes, but he surely knew how to deal with slightly stressful occasions.

Dougie put the movie on, joining Tom and Danny on the bigger sofa and curling himself with his head on Danny's lap. The two had already developed a deep friendship, despite how different they were. Danny was like the older brother Dougie had always wanted. Danny chuckled and stroked Dougie's blonde hair comfortingly. The four (even Tom, despite the whole ordeal with Lilith) felt like everything could come and try to put them down and destroy them, but their friendship would always be stronger.

**_15th August, 2003, 14:26_**

Harry wasn't exactly feeling better, but he had refused to go back to his room after lunch, feeling somehow a tiny bit useless if he was sleeping in the living room instead of in his own bed. He had hid himself under the covers after mumbling something about his 'stupid arse headache' and had gone back to sleep in record time.

Fletch and Tommy had called earlier to make sure Harry was doing okay (as okay as he could do with a double lung pneumonia), and Tom and Danny had been helping Dougie with some difficult bass lines in the music room, moving on to song writing as silently as possible so not to disturb Harry.

'I'm kind of hungry.' Danny said after a while, putting away his guitar.

'Alright, let's get some food then.' Tom got up, and the three made their way to the staircase. Suddenly, the air got colder, and Tom tensed up, looking around expecting to find Lilith. He heard a scream and looked at the staircase.

Danny seemed to trip over something inexistent, immediately falling down the stairs, his body seeming to hit as much of the steps as possible. He stopped, already on the floor, landing with a loud thud.

**FLOYNTERXxx: Haha, I've got a lot planning for the guys, sorry if you don't like to see them being hurt xD Glad you're liking the story :)**


	14. The Scare

**A/N: Hi there! Thank you so much for the lovely reviews in the last chapter, it means a lot to me that you're liking the story! In the last update, I said my updates this week could be irregular, but I'm having no problems with it. However, I'll be spending next week in a friend's house, and we won't have Internet... So I will probably update Friday night if everything goes well, and I'll only update again next Thursday. Sorry about that. Anyway, enjoy this chapter, and please review!**

Tom ran down the steps, with Dougie behind him, and Harry shuffled from the living room with tired eyes to investigate what had woke him up, his eyebrows furrowing when he glanced at Danny on the floor, unconscious. Tom kneeled next to Danny, shifting his straightened bangs away from his forehead, where was a long gash bleeding quite profusely down his face.

'Wake up, Danny, please, please wake up...' Tom murmured as he looked back and forth between Danny's face and is now bloodied hands and fingers.

'We need to take him to the hospital.' Harry stated, his concern hidden by how tired he felt, and by the way he was trying to keep control of the situation.

'I-I know, but I wanted him to wake up first because- because- oh, I don't know, Harry!' Tom stuttered at first, and Harry could see he was starting to have a panic attack.

'Hey, calm down, mate.' Harry put a hand on Tom's shoulder. Then, he turned to Dougie, who was right behind Tom.

'Go get some towel kind of thing; we need to stop the bleeding.' Dougie nodded fast and run upstairs as fast as he could. Harry kneeled beside Tom, placing a hand on Danny's wrist and rubbing his temples with the other, trying to make his headache stop. Danny's eyebrows moved a bit and he frowned, trying to take one of his hands to the cut, but Tom took a hold of his hand before he could.

'Danny!' He gasped, not really knowing what to tell his friend, and he noticed Dougie wasn't with them anymore. Danny moaned in pain and squeezed his eyes shut.

'I feel sick.' He said simply, his voice cracking halfway through the sentence. Harry glanced quickly at the stairs, realizing Dougie was taking way too long to get a simple towel.

'Do you feel like throwing up at all?' Tom asked Danny, watching his face get paler by the second. Danny nodded, his few movements small and slow.

'Oh, God damn it, Dougie, what is taking you so long?!' Harry groaned before racing to the kitchen, returning with a red plastic bucket and a washcloth. Tom took the washcloth of his hands and pressed it against Danny's forehead where the cut was, and dabbing it across his cheek to clean up the blood.

'Tom...' Danny whispered, sounding plain sick and broken. Harry got his hint and placed quickly the bucket under Danny's chin. The Boltoner sat up suddenly and threw up violently inside the bucket. When he was finished, Danny wiped his mouth in his sleeve and rested his back on the wall, Tom still holding the cloth to his forehead.

'Where did Dougie go?' Tom remembered, looking at Harry. 'I told him to get a towel for Dan like five minutes ago.' Harry replied. Tom paled.

'You told him. To get a towel. On his own.' Tom said nervously, looking at Harry, who had a confused look on his face.

'Uh, sure... I mean, he is fifteen after all, I think he is old enough to go around the house to get stuff, maybe?' Harry replied with a hint of sarcasm, but Tom didn't want to listen. He was now way more worried about a Dougie left alone with Lilith, and he ran upstairs, murmuring a 'stay with Danny' in the way.

Thinking Dougie could have gone search for a towel in Danny's en-suite bathroom, he went there, but upon entering Danny's room he noticed something clearly wrong.

_The balcony door was open. _

Tom ran to Danny's balcony, observing the big tree in front of him, searching for his friend and praying for not finding a mangled mess of human bones on the floor of the backyard. Finally, in a high branch near the pool, he saw Dougie with a lost look on his face, hung by his boxers. When he finally noticed Tom, his cheeks turned bright red.

'I, uh, don't know how this happened. I mean, I was in Danny's bathroom, and suddenly...'

'Try not to move, okay? I will be right down.' Tom ran off once again, passing next to Danny and Harry in the bottom of the stairs, who eyed him with curious looks, and arrived to the backyard, looking up to Dougie's face. Tom was going to try and think of a safe way to get Dougie down, but before he could even do it, he heard the branch break and saw Dougie fall to the ground, landing a little too far for Tom to try to catch him.

Tom heard a loud crack followed by a cry of pain coming from Dougie, who rolled around clutching his chest with his right arm, with tears rolling down his face.

'Dougie, are you alright?' Dougie tried to sit up, with no success.

'My chest really hurts... And I think I did something to my wrist.' He showed Tom his left arm, which was bent in an odd angle. Tom sighed and picked him up bridal style, taking him to the back seat of his blue Mini. Dougie was sprawled across the whole back of the car, and curled up on his stomach, his left arm holding his ribs once again.

'Hang in there.' Tom told him, speeding up to where Danny was. 'Harry, help me getting him up.' Harry nodded and helped Danny get on his feet, with an arm around his shoulders. The three shuffled to Tom's car, getting Danny to the passenger seat. Harry glanced at Dougie in the backseat, whimpering in pain.

'Tom! What...' 'I'll explain later, Harry. I'm taking them to the hospital.' Tom sat in the driver seat and turned on the car. 'Call me if you need anything.'

'But Dougie is...'

'I said I'll explain everything later!' And Tom drove off, leaving Harry looking at the spot where the car was, before getting in the house again.

**FLOYNTERXxx: Haha, sorry about the cliffhanger, it seemed somewhere good**** to end the chapter! I have a feeling that you will like the next one then, you can predict what is going to happen next most of the times! And thank you, I'm really enjoying the workshop kind of thing, made lots of friends already (and covered myself in blue paint too!).**

**deeplyinloves: Well, thank you for reviewing, it's good to know you're liking this! And yes, I'm mean to these boys, haha!**

**Galaxy-Defending-Hopeful: Wow, thank you so much! I don't really know what to say, I mean, I'm truly enjoying writing this, I hope you are loving reading it as much as I love writing it :D Hope you liked this chapter by the way :)**


	15. The Thoughts

**A/N: Hello again! Last chapter had three reviews, thank you so much! (I know this might sound ridiculous, me being so happy with three reviews, but it's really the best feedback I've ever had!). Unfortunately, this will be the last time I will updade before going on holiday with my best friend where we have no Internet, sorry :( And this chapter is short too, sorry again. But I hope you enjoy it, and please review!**

**_15_****_th_****_ August, 2003, 7:19pm_**

Tom stepped in the shower after the most stressing afternoon of his life.

Danny was alright, fortunately. The doctors had examined him and had concluded he had a slight concussion, and had agreed to send him home as long as he took it easy and slept for the following days. Dougie had to take some x-rays of his wrist and in his chest, revealing some broken ribs and a fractured schaphoid. The doctors had also let him go home with painkillers and bandaged ribs.

The trip from hospital back to the house had been quiet, Danny feeling too tired, Dougie in too much pain to say something, and Tom without anything to say.

Now that both of them were resting in their own beds, Tom could finally relax a little in the shower and let the hot water wash away his worries. Or at least try.

It felt impossible to let his concern go away, but Tom was sure he would feel refreshed to face his three best friends and take care of them. And he still had to tell Fletch and Tommy. Dougie wouldn't be able to play bass during two weeks and he and Danny also needed a few days off.

Tom turned off the water and wrapped a towel around his waist. As soon as he put his feet out of the shower, he felt the world spin and his vision whitened for a few seconds. He sat in the toilet seat and put his head between his hands.

Tom had felt like that before. He had felt the weight of the world on his back, preventing him from getting up and look ahead of him. He had felt like nothing was worth it, his little world falling on him. The dark blur of his problems blinding him from the positive sides of his life. He had felt sad all the time, like everything was against him. He had also felt useless and unworthy when he discovered he could not make it all stop on his own.

Tom got up gingerly and put his hand on the wall, trying to get himself steady on his feet. As he opened the cabinet, he fixed his gaze on a razor.

Tom had heard about self-harm. Tom had thought it was stupid, and he had not been able to understand why people did it.

Suddenly, everything had become so clear for him. His hand reached the sharp object.

But then he thought about Harry. The guy who could be so competitive, cocky and self absorbed most of the time, but dropped everything if one of his friends needed him.

Tom thought about Dougie, sweet innocent Dougie, who was still just a kid, but was so mature for his age, and already enjoyed everything the others did, coming up with an unnapropied comment once in a while despite his shyness.

Tom thought about Danny. He thought about the uncountable song writing sessions that ended up with both of them laughing their arses off, the nights they would spend together talking about anything that came to their minds. Tim thought about how Danny was definitely not the brightest person he had met, but also how he was so carefree and how he could lift everyone's moods just saying a simple joke and being himself because he had a big heart.

Tom thought about how Harry barely had energy to climb the stairs with pneumonia, how Dougie was laid up in bed with a broken arm and broken ribs, how Danny was resting because of his concussion, and how everything that had happened to his friends was his entire fault.

Tom put the razor in the back of the cabinet. Right then, he was sure he would never do it. His friends needed him, and he owed them, _at least_, his mental health.

**FLOYNTERXxx: You finally have an account! That is so cool! Haha, you got that right, he really feels guilty! Big stuff will happen on the next chapter or in the next one after that, okay? And I've really enjoyed the workshop, thank you!**

**Galaxy-Defending-Hopeful: Thank you :) One rule I always try to follow when I write is not protect the characters. But yes, I'm incredibly mean to them, something awful always happens to them in my stories! Thank you so much for reviewing, I'm so happy you're enjoying this :D**

**LottiePoynter: WelL, thank you! That was really sweet :) You should see the 'McFly FanFiction' folder on my laptop. I probably have at least three or four of them being on car accidents or something. That's what I write the best! But thank you so much, hope you like the next chapters too!**


	16. The Protection

**A/N: I'm back again! I had loads of fun at my friend's house (unfortunately involving mosquitos, spiders and stuff...), but my laptop died. I'm currently using my mom's, so there should be no problem at all in the updates. Please check my new story, it's a prompt table, I still need to re-think some ideas, and any kind of suggestion or request would be great. I would also like to thank the regular reviewers, you have no idea how much feedback helps me! Thank you so much. Now, I'll be honest and say, this is definitely not one of the best chapters, but I just came back and didn't want to keep you waiting, so... But hopefully next one will be better. Please review, it means a lot to me!**

Tom went downstairs again after his shower. He thought Danny and Dougie were sleeping in their rooms, but upon entering the room, he saw his band mates were all there.

Dougie and Harry were sharing the biggest sofa, where they were both sleeping under a blanket, Dougie lying his head on Harry's chest, who had an arm carefully placed around Dougie's skinny shoulders. Danny, who was also sleeping, was laid on the recliner, still looking quite pale, and Tom could easily see the square piece of gauze on his forehead, partially covered by his straight bangs.

He walked towards Harry and Dougie and saw how peaceful they looked. Tom sighed and went to sit on the couch between them and Danny. Right after Tom sat down, Harry opened his eyes and looked around groggily.

'Hey Tom.' He said, shifting a bit in where he was with Dougie.

'Hey Harry.' Tom got up and sat on the arm of the sofa. Harry rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.

'I think you owe us an explanation.' Harry told him raising one eyebrow. Tom sighed again, knowing that after Dougie's inexplicable accident, Harry would want to know everything. And, sure, it was dangerous, but Tom felt they at least deserved to know what was happening, not only because they also lived in the house, but because they were his best friends, and they could help him deal with it.

'I have something to tell you.' Tom started. 'But Dan and Dougie have to listen to it too, so it's probably better if I tell you guys tomorrow.' Harry chuckled humourlessly.

'Don't worry about that.' He said. 'Danny needs to wake up in half hour to take his meds. And Doug should wake up in a few minutes.'

'Why would Doug wake up? He seems comfortable there.' Tom questioned, frowning.

'You know how he is a restless sleeper? He always kicks the blankets off him and constantly turns during sleep?'

'Yeah, I know.' Tom replied.

'Imagine that with three broken ribs and a broken arm. He has already woken up twice because of the pain. So it should take about five minutes from now to him to wake up.'

'Oh.' Tom looked down, ashamed, the amount of guilt he was feeling concentrating in his chest, making the act of breathe a whole lot harder. He closed his eyes shut and gulped.

'I'll be right back, okay?' Tom did not wait for Harry's answer and walked upstairs as fast as he could, avoiding running so not to wake Danny and Dougie.

The nearest room on the first floor was Harry's, so he got in closing the door behind him. The blue room weas messier than the usual, given to Harry's temporary condition: sweaty pyjamas and underwear lay around the floor, used and unused tissues all over Harry's desk and night table, and various types of antipyretics and painkillers were mixtured with the new packs of tissues on the top of Harry's huge CD collection pile.

Tom took his phone out of his pocket and dialled Giovanna's number. After all, when you have a particularly evil ghost threatening your family, friends or loved ones, you would not want to risk something bad happening to the one you plan to marry with.

'No, I just wanted to make sure you were okay, really.' He smiled as he walked around the division with the phone in his hand, a habit he had ever since he had a mobile.

'Alright, alright... So, how are the boys?' Giovanna's sweet voice asked from the other side. Tom ran a shaky hand through his blonde hair nervously.

'Uh, well, they're...uh...fine, only...well, Harry has got a pneumonia because of the cold in the other night.' Tom heard Giovanna gasp. He prepared himself to continue. 'And Doug and Danny are injured because...well, you know Dan...he's accident prone as he is. And Doug's learning with him, unfortunately.' Tom chuckled nervously in the last words.

'But are they okay?' Giovanna asked in a serious voice.

'Yeah, just a light concussion for Danny and Dougie has got three broken ribs and a broken wrist too. Don't worry, Gi, I'll take care of them well.'

'Alright.' Giovanna sounded too worried to be convinced by Tom's words.

'Look, I have to go to check on them and everything.' Tom said with a sad smile.

'Okay, but I miss you... When do you think you can come around?'

'I don't really know... There's the guys, then we will have to work extra hard when they're better...' Giovanna sighed.

'Fine, but call me when you have free time.'

'I promise.' Tom opened the door. 'Bye.'

'Bye, Tom. Love you.'

'Love you too.'

**15th August, 8:02pm**

'You alright, Dougs?' Harry asked as he saw the younger boy curl up on his stomach further and make a whimpering like sound. Dougie shook his head and wriggled closer to Harry's shoulder.

'My ribs are killing me.' He mumbled, using his right hand to shift away a piece of hair from his face.

'It'll get better in a few days, I promise.' Harry assured him, rubbing Dougie's forearm in comfort. He looked at the watch on the wall. 'Danny needs to take his meds now.' Harry got up, feeling a wave of dizziness hit him as he stood for being laid on the sofa for so long. He adjusted the blanket for Dougie. 'I'll be right back. Try to stay awake, alright?' Dougie nodded, and Harry shuffled to the kitchen, putting the kettle on. Although most people would not imagine Harry Judd drinking tea, he did love it. A mug of tea always made him calmer and helped him thinking clearly. He poured the steaming drink in four mugs which were in the usual tray, and made his way back to the living room, grabbing Danny's pills and an ice pack for Dougie.

Tom had just come downstairs, and quickly ran to help Harry with the tray.

'Go and wake Danny.' Tom instructed as he placed mugs on the coffee table. 'I have to talk to you guys.' His voice lowered at the last words. Harry nodded and walked towards Danny after throwing the ice pack to Dougie, who gladly accepted it.

'Dan? Danny? Wake up mate.' Harry shook the brunnete's shoulders softly. Danny groaned as he woke up, taking the tea mug Harry gave him and taking a sip.  
Tom took a quick glance at his friends and gulped. Maybe they needed to be protected. But Tom couldn't exactly do that, could he?

_What Tom did not know was that the one needing protection was him._

**FLOYNTERXxx: Don't be afraid of posting your own stuff, I'm sure it's good. Besides, writing helps you a lot in, well, writing better, I guess! At least it did to me... If you need something, like ideas, feedback, or something, just PM me, I would love to help! And thanks for reviewing as always :)**

**LottiePoynterr: Yeah, I have no idea why, but I kinda like to watch (more like imagine? haha) them suffer. We definitely need to share ideas and stories in the future. I'm glad you're enjoying this, and thank you for the feedback :D**

**LeilaTheGalaxyDefender: Haha, thank you so much, hope you have enjoyed this one too (even thought it's more like a filler kind of thing...).**


	17. The Confession

**A/N: Hello and sorry for the slow updates! Thank you so much for the reviews, hopefully there will be more action in the next chapter :)**

'I don't know where to start.' Tom looked down as he played with his fingers.

Dougie and Harry had gone back to their position on the sofa, and Danny was on the other couch, all of them ready to hear Tom explain everything. Not only their weird accidents, but his distant, lonely behaviour that had got worse at some point.

'Start from the begining.' Harry suggested, giving him a supportive smile and motioning for him to go on. Tom nodded shortly, taking a deep breath.

'Danny and I arrived here in the middle of July. It the first night here, while I was trying to fall asleep in my room, I saw a strange glow moving near the door.' He started.

'A glow?' Danny frowned.

'Yeah, I got up to check it out, and it was like...like there was a floating light in the air. Then, on the day Harry arrived, I found an old black book on his wardrobe that looled like a diary or something.'

'Yeah, I remember you helped me putting my t-shirts on the closet.' Harry said.

'Exactly. I took it to my room and didn't look at it for a few days. But that night...' Tom stopped and closed his lips in a tight line, and the other boys could see he was shaking a little. Danny slowly got up from where he was and sat next to him, putting a comforting arm around his shoulders. Tom closed his eyes. 'Ever since then, I have the same nightmare every night.' Tom buried his head in his hands and his body was shaking heavily.

'Nightmare?' Dougie asked in a small voice. Tom nodded again, his face red.

'Yes. The same every night. I'm in a corridor with a mirror in the end, then a little girl in a blue dress and an evil grin shows up behind me, and suddenly I see the corridor mirrored, like I was stuck in the other side if it, and my reflection is the little girl. When she looks at my eyes directly, that's when I wake up.'

'Sorry, did you mentioned a blue dress?' Danny frowned. Tom glanced at him, looking confused.

'Yes, the girl is always wearing a light blue dress. Why do you-'

'I have to show you guys something.' Danny said as he got up.

'What is it, Danny?' Tom asked him, feeling somehow conforted by not being the only one seeing Lilith or anything related to her. Danny didn't answer and started to climb the stairs with Tom following him. The two boys returned to the living room, carrying a black cloth bag, and sat down again. Danny opened the bag in his lap, hesitantly taking what Tom recognised to be Lilith's blue dress, that was burnt in some places. Danny glanced at the dress and sighed.

'I found this when I got in my wardrobe for the first time, but I only opened it some days later. I found it weird, but I kinda forgot about it. Until now.' Tom nodded.

'I think I can explain the dress. Some days after the first nightmare, I was in the music room, working on a new song, and suddenly, the computer turns on and opens a Word document, on his own.'

'That sounds like an horror movie.' Dougie mumbled.

'Yeah, I know. Anyway, I got up to turn it off, but...on the screen... I think she tried to communicate with me. She wrote things on the Word document.' Danny and Dougis were wide eyed at what Tom had just said, but Harry did not seemed totally convinced.

'Are we actually considering this?' He asked. 'I mean, this is crazy; are you trying to say that we are dealing with a ghost?'

'I think so, Harry.' Tom replied, his voice cracking as he made an apologetic half smile.

'So she wrote on the keyboard?' Danny questioned and Tom nodded. 'What did she write?'

'She wrote "what are you scared of, I'm not even alive". Then the computer went off. This happened some times, and we kind of talked, I wrote too. At the begining, she said she wanted me to do something for her, but I had to find out why.' Tom stopped, and took a deep breath before continuing. 'Then I remembered the black book I found inside Harry's closet. It had nothing written on it the first time I saw it. But the second time, there were two pictures on the first page.' Tom took the book out of the pocket in his hoodie and opened it, showing the pictures to the other three. 'This is the Catchpole family.' He pointed to the first picture, nd his finger moved to Lilith. 'And this is the girl that shows up in my dreams.' There was a silence in the room as the boys thought about what Tom had just said. Harry frowned and took a closer look t the second picture, the one with the house on fire and Lilith behind the iron gates, his eyes widening with realisation.

'Is that-it can't be-our house?' He asked, recognizing the street in the photo. Tom nodded, his eyes looking sad, as he turned the page.

'And there's also this.' Tom showed them the old newspaper article and read it to them. Dougie, Harry and Danny started to understand Lilith's story.

'So Lilith and her sister died here...in a fire? In this house?' Dougie asked, trying to process everything.

'Yes, they died in 1924.' Tom replied.

'That explains the burnt dress. The fire, I mean.' Harry stated.

'But there's more.' Tom looked at them again. 'One day, an hospital bracelet flew through the window, in the music room. It belonged to someone called Marie Hills. So I decided to find out who she was, you know, to see if I could know more about what Lilith wanted, because, obviously, there had to be a reason why a damn hospital bracelet flew inside, and it wasn't even a windy day. Besides, it was from London Central. So I went out one morning to London Central and I visited Marie Hills.'

'And then?' Danny asked.

'Marie is an eleven year old orphan. She is in a coma since May. While I was in her room, the black book appeared inside a cupboard, and it had this.' Tom read the paper about the Life Enchantment. Danny gasped.

'She wants you to kill Marie Hills.' Harry mumbled in a low voice. Tom nodded, and gulped, his eyes watering.

'And you know what? Marie Hill looks exactly like Lilith. It's freaking scary.' Tom erupted in sobs, making Danny hug him, with Harry joining him, and Dougie gave him a sympathetic smile from where he was. Tom recomposed himself, some tears still running down his cheeks. Somehow, it felt good to tell everything to his friends. But it was still his fault, everything was his fault. 'I tried to ignore her in the days after that, but that's when Harry got ill. I found two scribbled notes from her that afternoon. There was one saying that she would always be here, and the other said she would show me what she was capable off because I had ignored her, and that I could do nothing about it. So that's why all this happened.' Tom cried. 'It's all my fault! I'm sorry, I'm so, so, so, sorry...'

**LottiePoynterr: Thanks! I love Pudd, everyone loves Pudd! Hopefully more action will come in the next chapters, and thanks for reviewing!**


	18. The Strenght

**15th August, 2008, 11:24pm **

It took a while for Tom to calm down, but Danny knew he had not believed them when they said it was not his fault.

Danny was lying in his bed, awake, just thinking. In just a few weeks, Tom had become unrecognisable. His friend had been dealing (and still was!) with a situation that had escaped perfectly to his control, and he had only realised that when Tom turned into a sobbing mess a few hours before. Danny felt revolted because it was not fair. How was it fair that his best friend, one of the nicest people he had ever met, could feel like that? How could Tom deserve something like that? He silently hoped that now, that he was not alone with his secret, now that they knew, Tom would go back to normal.

A light knock on his door interrupted his thoughts.

'Yeah?' Danny whispered, wincing at the pain in his head when he propped himself up on his elbows, so that he could see who was there.

'Can I talk to you?'

'Dougie?' Danny saw his friend entering the room, an arm still holding his ribs, and sitting beside him on the bed. 'Is everything alright?' Danny sat up straighter and looked at Dougie's blue eyes. His friend looked scared.

'Do you remember when Tom said he had found two notes written by the girl?' Dougie looked away from Danny and focused his gaze on the wall in front of him. 'One saying that his friends and family would suffer and the other saying he could run, but she would always find him?' Danny nodded. 'I saw the second one flying through the living room window weeks ago, when the three of us were watching TV.' Dougie confessed, letting out a laugh, one of those laughs that gets stuck in your throat when you're about to cry. 'I read it once, and the paper turned to ashes right after. I thought I was having hallucinations or something. I was scared as fuck for the rest of the week.' The blonde buried his head in his hands, and Danny put an arm around his skinny shoulders. 'I wonder how Tom did it.' Dougie raised his voice a little. 'How the hell did he cope for weeks with a _fucking_ ghost, with books, notes, computers, appearing and disappearing, nightmares every night!' He sobbed louder, letting Danny comfort him and lay him in his bed, covering the both of them with the red blanket. 'I'm so scared, Danny.' He sniffled after a while. So Danny pretended he was not scared too, and managed to keep calm and not burst in tears beside his friend.

'Shh, you're safe, I'm here. I know this all seems fucked up right now, but let's just sleep, and it'll all look better in the morning.'

_**16th August, 2003, 10:17am**_

'So, do we have a plan?' Harry asked.

After breakfast, the boys had gone to the music room to discuss a 'plan', like Harry had called it, to get them out of the situation they were in. The drummer was not exactly healed from his pneumonia, but since Danny and Dougie were nowhere near better than him, he decided to help Tom a little. Tom was not feeling perfect either. It was obvious to anyone that he had cried himself to sleep, and he had shown up in the living room with dark bags under his eyes, which were red and swollen.

'We could tell Fletch.' Harry suggested, which surprised the other three, as Harry was kind of the rebel one in the band, and they did not expected him to involve their manager in a problem like that.

'Do you really think it would be a good idea? He would think we were stoned or something.' Tom muttered moodily.

'Yes, but we have proofs! The book, and the weird stuff that happened to us three. Besides, he trusts you a lot. Seeing as you were the one who had the nightmares and had the whole experience, he will have to believe us.' Harry explained. Tom curled up in a ball, his knees against his chest.

'I don't want to tell the whole story again.' He sounded scared like a little kid and like he would start crying at any minute. 'I'll start crying again, and he will think I'm crazy.' Tears ran down Tom's red cheeks, and his breathing became irregular.

'We can do it for you, mate.' Danny offered. He moved closer to Tom and let the blonde cry in his shoulder, and exchanged a worried glance with Harry, who observed how Danny was holding up so amazingly. Harry had defined Danny and himself as the strongest ones, emotionally, even though Danny could cry easily, but knew how to deal with pressure and was in a good mood most of the times. Harry simply kept his emotions inside, and tried to help as much as he could. It was not enough, though. There were four of them, but they were dealing with something they didn't knew much about.

_They needed help, more than Harry or Danny could provide, because even themselves knew they would break at some point._

**_16th August, 2003, 3:43pm _**

Fletch looked at the boys, his lips closed in a tight line, but they couldn't quite understand his expression. They had called him for a reunion in the band house, explaining him that something like that couldn't be discussed by the phone, and they had just finished their long explanations about Lilith, the Catchpole family, Marie Hills and the black book, and their connection, Fletch had listened everything without interrupting them (which was not like him at all), and now he was just staring into the four of them, as if trying to fit all the ideas into his head and understand everything. With a sigh, he finally spoke.

'You have to understand that this is not exactly easy to believe. As much as I trust you, I had never thought about ghosts and that kind of beings, if we can call them _beings_, that is, and, like you, I don't know what to do about this. This is something really serious, not like in the movies with haunted houses. This is actually dangerous for all of you, and includes killing a girl. You have a lot of evidence there, so I can only believe you, but I need to think about this and have a talk with Tommy, so that there are no ghosts here when you start dealing with the new album, singles, press, shows... What you told me cannot interfere with any of that.' Fletch left them, after promising he would talk with Tommy and find a solution for everything, which made the boys feel a lot less nervous.

**_16th August, 2003, 9:53pm_ **

'I don't understand.' Dougie said, his brows furrowing in confusion.

Danny, Tom, Harry and Dougie were back in the living room, examining Lilith's black book that was now in Dougie's lap.

'What is it, Doug?'

'Have you seen 'The Exorcist'?' The blonde asked.

'That old movie with the green girl and the priest?' Danny asked, tilting his head to the side.

'Yeah, that one. The girl's body is possessed by a demon. In the life enchantment, it says we have to...kill Marie so that Lilith can stay in her body. Why can't she just possess Marie's body, like in the movie?' Harry rolled his eyes.

'Maybe because it's _just_ a movie, Dougie.' Harry replied in annoyance.

'Well, yeah, but-' Dougie stopped talking when the book opened himself, the first few pages turning as if there was a fan right next to it, violently blowing the pages. When it stopped, Danny, Tom and Harry sat next to Dougie, all of them looking scared, and Tom noticed the fourth page was not empty anymore.

_'While performing the life enchantment, the apprentice must have in mind that the dead body is essential for the charm. Contrarily to popular belief, the ghost cannot stay for long in a living body. While in a possession state, the body has two souls fighting inside of it, which would create an unbearable environment for the ghost. Killing the body allows its soul to go away to the other side, and the ghost can finally occupy the body and live inside of it normally.'_ They all read in silence. Dougie sighed.

'I guess this answers my question...'

Tom smiled weakly, shrugging. 'I wish it would answer some of mine too.'

**deeplyinloves: Haha, thanks! I hope this is not being _too_ predictable, I wanted to keep some of the mystery! Hope you enjoyed this longer chapter :D an thanks for your reviews!**


	19. The Solution

**A/N: Hello, and thank you for the reviews in the last chapter, the replies are in the end as always. I think I'm starting to go back to my regular updates, which is great! Sorry for any mistakes, even though I re-read this twice, sometimes I overlook things. Enjoy :) There's a little Author Note in the end, by the way.**

_**1**__**7th August, 2003, 3:52pm**_

'What did he say?' Danny asked, crossing his arms on the top of the guitar in his lap.

Tom had just ended a phone call with Fletch and returned to the music room, where they were rehearsing to record a new demo. Or at least trying to, since Harry could not play the drums very loud because of his and Danny's head, and Dougie was having a hard time playing his bass with a broken wrist. The boys had started to make demos again, after their manager had told them the ordeal with Lilith absolutely could not interfere with the band activities.

Harry and Dougie stopped playing too and looked at the blonde, waiting for an answer. Tom managed to smile a little.

'He told Tommy everything, he didn't react as bad as Fletch thought he would.' Tom took a seat on the chair he was before.

'What else did Tommy say?' Harry questioned as he played with his drum sticks.

'He has a friend and she is a medium. He thinks she might help us.' Tom explained.

'Cool.' Danny said simply. And just like that, they continued to work on their demo. Some normality had put the boys on a good mood, and they weren't about to waste that moment.

_**18th August, 2003, 8:23pm**_

'It must be them.' Harry said when he heard a knock on the door, and got up to open it. Fletch had talked with the medium, who agreed to help the boys, so the manager suggested having a dinner together in the band house.

Danny, Tom and Dougie got up too and they were standing next to Harry when he opened the door. In the porch, there was Fletch right next to who their presumed to be the medium.

All of them were expecting the woman to look more like a gypsy, with a long skirt, messy dark hair, tanned skin, a reasonable quantity if necklaces, bracelets, rings, earrings or a turban (Danny had even thought about a crystal ball!), but the woman in front of them was as normal as rain in England.

She looked only two or three years older than them, was only a bit shorter than Harry and had quite an athletic body structure, with her shoulders lager than her hips, suggesting she practiced some sport like swimming or tennis, but there was no way she could ever be a model with such a masculine body. Her hair was dark brown, short and wavy and went to just a little above her small ears. Her face resembled a child's with big almond shaped yellowish eyes and her pale skin dotted with freckles.

'Good evening.' She greeted with a smile in a raspy voice. A mixture of 'good evenings' and 'hellos' was heard from the boys as they opened the door wider letting the guests in. The medium got in behind Fletch and the boys led the two of them to the living room, where everyone sat around the coffee table on sofas, couches and three bean bags that Harry and Tom had carried from the music room.  
The coffee table had Lilith's book and the dress on the top of it, along with enough biscuits for everyone, because Tom had got bored in the afternoon.

'Can I put this here?' The woman asked, and it was only then that the boys noticed she was carrying a black bag, similar to a laptop case, only bigger.

'Sure.' Tom replied, and she moved the biscuit tray to the left and placed her case next to it. Fletch eyed all of them and put his hands on thighs, showing that he was ready to start whatever that reunion would be.

You should start by presenting yourselves.' He glanced at the four of them.

'Right, so I am Tom Fletcher and I'm eighteen years old. Us four have a band and we all live here. I sing and play the guitar, and compose too, by the way.' Tom presented himself with his usual shyness around strangers and looked at the others, as if asking for them to at least say their names.

'Uh, I'm Danny, I'm seventeen, I also sing and play guitar.' He picked a little of the gauze on his head nervously, his hand moving to his hair right after.

'I'm Dougie, I'm fifteen, I play the bass.' Dougie muttered, blushing, seemingly shyer that Tom.

'Harry Judd. Seventeen. Drums.' Unlike Dougie, Harry's voice was well heard as one of his eyebrows lit up, oozing confidence, and making a lot of eye contact. The medium mimicked Harry's eyebrow movement, seeming impressed.

'Nice to meet you, boys, I'm Lori Andrews, I'm twenty one, and I don't play any instrument, but I am a medium. My mother and grandmother are too, and they taught me everything I know.' She smiled wider. 'Now it is difficult not to notice you four don't seem very healthy, not wanting to offend you. Is that something you can explain?'

'Yeah, I fell down the stairs and Doug here fell of a high branch of the tree over there.' Danny explained, pointing to the tree, that was visible from one of the windows.

'And-' Lori motioned at Harry and Tom, who looked particularly tired. Harry made one of his confident smiles again.

'I got a pneumonia just a few days ago. And we are just overall tired, it had been an exhausting couple of days for us.' Lori nodded understandingly.

'I assume all this has to do with the spirit?' Lori said in a half questioning tone, and the boys nodded. 'Okay, now, your manager Tommy has already explained me more or less what happened, but I wanted to hear it from you guys, so I can know the details better and help you.'

Tom looked down nervously. He really didn't want to tell the whole story again. The nightmares in the previous night had been particularly scary, and he had slept less than five hours. But the Danny cleared his throat to start speaking, and Tom sighed in relief.

_**18th August, 2003, 9:02pm**_

Lori played with a strand of her hair as she read the newspaper article in Lilith's book.

'This is from 1924.' She said, her eyes still observing the paper. 'Lilith died when she was eleven years old, and Marie is now eleven too, which would work perfectly for a Life Enchantment.' Lori's eyes moved to the third page. 'I know this. The Life Enchantment. It's from a really old book from... I would say from somewhere between the thirteenth or fourteenth century.'

'The book can't be _that_ old!' Harry protested. 'I mean, a simple paper cannot survive seven or eight hundred years, can it?'

'I meant the enchantment, not the paper. Lilith probably had access to it somehow and copied to another paper when she was alive.' She explained before closing the book. 'We can solve Lilith's problem without having to kill Marie.' The boy's faces lit up a bit, but Lori had a concerned expression in her face. 'But it might not be _that_ easy. I'll explain. There are two...let's call it dimensions: the dimension that belongs to the ones who live, the one where we are at right now, and then there is the other side. When people die, they go to the other side. _Normally_. Lilith is someone who should be in the other side, but for some reason, she isn't.'

'Do you have any clue why?' Danny asked.

'The spirits that stay in our dimension are usually souls that died in some sort of tragic way. Lilith died in a fire, so maybe that's why.'

'And why does she want to live again?' Danny questioned once again. Harry rolled his eyes.

'Isn't it obvious, Dan? Wouldn't you want to go back to live if you died?'

'It isn't that obvious, actually.' Lori interrupted. 'Being stuck in our dimension when you are a spirit isn't that fun. Lilith was an eleven year old girl, she lived with her parents and her little sister. They all died and went to the other side, and she was left behind. She wants to live in Marie Hills' body so she can live again, then die, hopefully in a less tragic way, and go to the other side to join her family forever.' Dougie shook his head and everyone turned to him.

'Why would she want to go back to her family again? Her parents _killed_ her.' He said, and Lori could notice his eyes getting darker in what seemed to be anger. She smiled warmly, lifting one eyebrow.

'Your family is your family, it doesn't matter if they're schizophrenic. Besides, she was just an eleven year old, she needs her family, even though her parents killed her.' Lori explained, but Dougie chuckled humourlessly, disagreeing.

'My father left us in the beginning of July. Not even in a hundred years, there's no way I'll ever forgive him for what he did.' Tom, Harry, Danny and Fletch looked at him, surprised. Harry clenched his fists, feeling an urge to find Dougie's father and tell him a few unpleasant things, but then he thought about his friend and his expression softened as he moved closer to Dougie, who looked ready to burst into angry tears, and hugged him.

'I'm so sorry, Doug.' Dougie shrugged.

'Why didn't you tell us before?' Tom asked softly.

'I didn't want to talk about it.' He murmured. Lori closed her lips in a tight line.

'Different people react differently, Dougie. Lilith was younger than you, there are many different factors.' She stated. 'Another possible reason for her to want Marie's body is to live the life she didn't have.' Dougie nodded, accepting her arguments.

'But I don't get it: how does this help us solving the problem?' Harry questioned, impatient. Lori took a deep breath.

'If she wants to join her family, we can try and do that.'

'Sorry, but how exactly do we do that?' Tom squinted his eyes.

'We have to destroy every thing that links Lilith to our dimension.'

'Like what?' Danny shifted in the couch, resting his elbows in his knees and his face in his hands. Lori shrugged.

Everything we find. Her book, her dress, her photos...her body.' Fletch shook his head.

'We won't find a body. She died in a fire, so she probably turned to ashes.'

'Then how is her dress still almost entirely blue?' Lori challenged. 'Look, I don't know what happened, but she might not have been completely burnt. Either way, she cannot go to the other side if there is something connecting her to this dimension.' She explained.

Tom looked like he was in deep thought, Harry was just frowning as he glanced at Lori, Dougie was playing with his fingers, thinking about everything too, and Danny was biting his nails. Fletch eyed all of them, before suggesting they moved on to dinner.

**_18th August, 2003, 10:18pm_ **

'I was thinking about doing a little something, but I need to know if you are all up to it.' Lori announced after dinner, when they got back to their respective seats around the coffee table. She grabbed the black bag she had brought with her and put it in her lap.

'What is it?' Tom asked, not really knowing what to expect. Lori started to open the bag and took something that looked like a board from the inside. Harry's eyes widened in realisation.

'Is that a-'

'Yes, this is an Ouija board. If everything goes well, we will be able to have a little chat with Lilith.' Lori smiled.

**maysidotes: So it's 16th August? Mine's on 22th August! Cool, hope you're enjoying this!**

**Anigen: Haha, that will be answered in time, check out the next chapters when I update, it shouldn't be too long! Thanks for reviewing by the way :D**

**A/N: The medium, Lori, is utterly based on me, not only psychologically, but physically, except the short hair, mine is incredibly long and dyed dark brown, even though its natural colour is a blondish brown. One of my biggest fears on creating this character was making it too flawless. Perfect characters are really boring, but I could not put much of her personality here, because she has just met the boys, and she won't appear _that_ much. Anyway, I hope you don't find her boring, please tell me what you thought, thanks :)**


	20. The Spirit

**A/N: Hello there! Here's chapter twenty! I hope you enjoyed the last one, there will be more revelations in the next chapters, that will hopefully come soon. And have you heard? Danny's engaged! I'm so happy for them, and it kind of annoys me all the hate for Georgia that some 'fans' post on Tumblr... Anyway, enjoy this and please review :)**

'A...an Ouija board?' Danny repeated, as if he was not quite believing it. Lori nodded.

'Ouija boards are used to communicate with spirits.' She placed the board on the table. It was black, and had letters and numbers all around it, and a small circle in the middle. 'We are going to ask questions and, if she is here and wants to answer, she will move the glass to the letters or numbers she wants and form words.' Lori took three candles out of a smaller division on her bag. 'The communication with spirits in this board must be done in the dark, with weak light sources, that's why I brought the candles.' Lori stopped to look at the boys. 'But we discussed a lot of the things today, and it's perfectly understandable if you don't feel ready to do this.' Danny and Harry glanced at Tom.

'I don't mind doing it. I mean, all the other times she talked with me, I was scared because I was on my own, but now we're all here and I feel safer.' Tom said.

'Yeah, I'm up to it, then.'

'Sure, me too.' Danny and Harry had made their decision.

'Do you want to do it, mate?' Harry asked Dougie, who shrugged.

'I don't mind, I guess.' Dougie replied.

'Alright, I need a glass and a lighter, please.' Lori demanded in a determined voice.

_**18th August, 2003, 10:27pm**_

'Are you ready?' Lori whispered. The living room was now completely dark, apart from the candles, and Lori, Fletch, Dougie, Harry, Danny and Tom were sitting in pillows around the coffee table, where was the Ouija board with the glass on the centre. A general whisper of 'yes' was heard. 'Okay connect your pointer fingers with the people next to you, and keep your hands on the table. Now clear your head and take deep breaths.' Everyone did as they were told, and Lori placed delicately her pointer finger on the base of the glass, which was turned upside down. 'Okay, now do what I am doing. Put your finger on the glass like me.'

'Can it be the finger from my left hand?' Dougie questioned. 'My right hand is broken...'

'Yes, you may put the hand you prefer.' She assured.

'Oh, cool.' Danny smiled, and stretched his left arm to touch the glass. 'I'm left-handed.'

'Okay, enough playing, kids. I am going to call her now, okay?' There was a silence and Lori cleared her throat. 'Is there is any spirit here?' Lori's voice was loud and clear. 'Could you let us know if you are here? Like throwing or moving something? We mean you no harm.'

There was silence for a few moments, but everyone heard the little tap on the table. Lori continued. 'Okay, very well. Would you mind answering us a few questions? Knock once in the table for no and two for yes.' Two hesitant knocks were heard on the table, coming from somewhere between Tom and Danny, who looked at their right and left side respectively, as if trying to sense some presence. 'Okay, Lilith, is that your name?'

Everyone heard two immediate taps, this time coming from the centre of the board. 'Lilith, when were you born?' Lori glanced at all of the boys. 'Don't press your finger against the glass. Just let it move naturally.' She quickly whispered.

In some seconds, slowly but surely, the glass was moving to the number three, and then to zero. With her left hand, Lori scribbled the numbers while the glass moved to a small notebook she had beside the board. The cup finally stopped after stopping in seven numbers. 'So she means November thirty, 1913.' Lori said.

'Oh great, we even share birthdays.' Dougie whispered sarcastically. Fletch looked at him as if saying to shut up and behave. Lori smiled a little at Dougie's sarcasm.

'Alright Lilith, did you live in this house when you were alive?' The medium returned to the question. Two soft taps were heard, but they seemed to come from the DVD shelves behind them, near the kitchen. Lori took a deep breath and closed her eyes, concentrating. 'How exactly did you die?' Lori's voice was shaking a little. The boys frowned, thinking the question was unnecessary, and they watched with wide eyes as the glass moved to ten different letters. Lori was still taking notes on her paper, and, when the glass stopped moving, she picked up her notebook and showed them the letters Lilith had just indicated.

'Buried alive.' Lori whispered, looking as surprised as everyone else.

'But she died in a fire! What does she mean _buried alive_?' Tom hissed, running his hand through his blonde hair nervously.

'That might explain why the dress isn't completely burnt.' She whispered back. 'Do you mean us any harm?' Lori continued. They all heard an hesitant knock on the coffee table.

'She means no?' Danny asked in a low voice. Lori was going to answer him, but suddenly the whole DVD shelf broke in two, sending the boxes to all over the floor around it, like it had been an explosion, and the room went completely dark, because the candles died on their own.

_That had been Lilith's way to say yes._

**deeplyinloves: Thank you! I thought it would be fun for them all to get to 'talk' with Lilith, and a medium could help them get a solution for all of this. I still had to watch again 'Ghost Hunting With McFly' for this one, but it was well fun to write. If you don't know what is 'Ghost Hunting With McFly', go to YouTube right now! It's awesome to see their reactions and the medium. And thanks for reviewing :D**


	21. The Fire Walls

**A/N: Okay, I am so, so sorry for the lack of updates on this. Especially because I have absolutely no reason to update this late, and I really am sorry. This is a shorter chapter, I know, but it just seemed right to cut it here. I'll try and post a bigger chapter next time. Thank you so much for all the reviews, they make me really happy! Enjoy :D**

Oh my God, what the hell just happened?!' Dougie bellowed, as Tom got up and clumsily searched for the light interruptor.  
With the lights on, the mess was even bigger than it had sounded. Boxes and boxes of DVDs were all over the floor, and the shelf was broken in two. It looked like a mini hurricane had been there.

'I think we should leave the rest of our Ouija session for another time.' Lori said from where she was, as she picked up one of the candles that had fallen to the floor.

'I think it is a good idea.' Fletch declared, eyeing the boys, who look scared and tired at the same time. 'You all need to sleep, tomorrow we can talk about what we are going to do about this.' He turned to Lori. 'Are you available tomorrow?' She nodded, as she started to put the board back in the black case she had brought.

'Sure, maybe we could meet after lunch? That way I could do some more research in the morning and ask my Mum for an opinion.' Lori got up, the board case slung over her shoulder, indicating she was ready to go home.

'Okay then, boys, expect us at half past two.' The manager got up too, and walked to the door. Lori said her goodbyes, kissing each boy's cheek in her slightly motherly way, and followed Fletch outside, closing the door behind her.

Tom sat back down on the couch before looking up at the other three.

'I'm so tired. I'm going to bed, and you should be going too.'

Danny, Dougie and Harry didn't even thought about disagreeing. After a night full of revelations, the four boys needed some time to settle everything in their heads, and sleep, to prepare themselves for another day filled with spirits, books, newspapers and fear. So they just nodded, getting up, and shuffled upstairs to their rooms, mumbling their 'good nights' on their way.

_**19th August, 2003, 2:42pm**_

'So, back in 30th November of 1924.' Lori entwined her fingers from both hands, starting the topic. The McFly boys were reunited around the table once again, Dougie next to Harry on the big sofa, Tom and Danny in two separate bean bags placed next to each other, and Lori sat on a chair, with her elbows propped up in the coffee table. 'There was a fire, which resulted on the death of two girls.'

'Lilith May Catchpole, and her sister, Rose Catherine.' Danny pointed out. The medium nodded, agreeing.

'Exactly. However, Lilith told us she was buried alive.' Lori stated.

'Which does not make sense at all...' Harry complained, taking his hands to his hair in frustration. Tom frowned.

'Is there any possibility of... of Lilith lying? Or... I don't know-' Tom muttered the last part to himself.

'I don't think so, Tom.' Lori shook her head. 'Ghosts do not usually lie. Lying is a human thing that people do to help (or at least try to help) themselves in their lives. A ghost simply has no reason to do so.' She explained.

'What if she is just confused about what happened? Maybe she died in the fire, but for some reason, she thinks someone buried her.' Fletch suggested, and Lori shook her head once again.

'Unless she died in her sleep, no. If she was buried alive, the cause of death was probably hunger, dehydration, or lack of oxygen. From the exact moment someone dies, they see what happens right next from their spirit form. So she is telling the truth.' The boys sighed after Lori's explanation, slightly frustrated. If they were going to get their solution by elimination of theories, it would take a long time. Lori took a deep breath. 'Look- I'm just trying to help. I know a lot about spirits, but my rational side is, if you will excuse me, absolute crap. We have to use everything we know, and put it together. Before we put Lilith definitely in the other side, we need to understand her reasons, her past, the way she thinks.' The room fell in a slightly awkward silence, as everyone thought about something useful that could come to their minds.

'She never did tell us that she had died in this house, did she?' Harry thought out loud, getting everyone's attention. 'This house was constructed using little parts of the old structure, the part of the structure that actually survived the fire. Her dress was only burnt in some places, so we can conclude she was not fatally affected by the flames.'

'But how could a house structure built before 1920 survive a fire? It does not make sense!' Tom exclaimed. Fletch frowned.

'A part of the old structure is still here. _If _she died inside the house, she must have stayed inside of a division made of fire proof material. Which was not that advanced for that time, Tom. I don't know much about Chemistry, but I know some houses had a small room, with walls made of metal that resists the flames, to use in case of...well, in case of fire.' Fletch replied. 'So, the division where Lilith died, _if_ she died in this house, I repeat, is most likely still here, in a rather intact state.'

'Brilliant, but, how do we know where it is? It could be anywhere.' Danny questioned. Lori picked up the black book, stroking its cover.

'Where did you guys find the black book?' She asked, looking at them.

'Tom found it in Harry's closet.' Fletch said. Lori nodded curtly.

'I see. What about the dress?'

'I found it in my walk-in wardrobe, when we first arrived to the house.' Danny explained, his eyes widening suddenly. 'Maybe, maybe that's where she died!' The medium made a small smile.

'Exactly what I was thinking.' She grabbed the dress from the top of the table and observed it.

'So when the house was on flames, Lilith hid herself on Danny's closet and got stuck in there?' The manager suggested.

'Is seems legitimate, as fire often blocks any kind of exits. However, there is one detail I don't believe in your theory, Mr. Fletcher.' Lori rested her head on the palm of her hand as she looked at the wall, her eyes unfocused as she was deep in thought.

'What is it?'

'I don't think she hid herself in there. I think her parents closed her inside, killing her.'

**FLOYNTERXxx: Oh God, that must have been scary, haha! I hope this chapter answers at least part of your question, but there will be more revelations in the next ones! **

**banovice: Wow, thank you so much! And yes, I actually got the idea for this story after one of the many times I saw Ghost Hunting. Hope you liked this chapter, and thanks for reviewing :)**

**deeplyinloves: Haha, I know! It was so funny, because Danny was so scared as he felt the thing touching him! He was laughing, but you could see how nervous he was! Thank you so much for reviewing :D**


	22. The Discovery

**A/N: Hello! Sorry (again) for the late update. I've been drawing a lot recently, and considering my drawings are, let's say, decent (I'm studying Arts, which helps a lot!), I am thinking about posting my own story covers. I made a drawing of Lilith, but I don't know if it is good enough to post is here (?) Anyway, if any of you wants to see it, just leave a review, an I'll post it. After this one, there should be four or five more chapters. Anyway, enjoy!**

'What makes you believe Lilith's parents actually killed her?' Harry asked, confused.

'Yes, Lori, it could have happened by accident. It was probably the fire that somehow blocked the exit.' Fletch disagreed. Lori furrowef her eyebrows.

'Call it whatever you want, but...it's just something I feel.' She replied, her gaze unfocused, as if she was trying hard to concentrate. The boys exchanged confused glances, but did not say anything and decided to trust Lori.

'And where exactly would be the fire proof room thing where Lilith supposedly died?' Tom questioned. Lori returned from her slight trance suddenly and looked directly at Tom.

'I am sorry I did not ask you this before.' She said, her eyes leaving Tom's for a split second. 'But ever since the first night here, have you heard any voices or anything like it?'

Tom paled, feeling his hands starting to sweat.

He had told everything to Danny, Harry, Dougie, Fletch and Lori, except his sleep paralisis. After finally understanding a lot more about Lilith, for some reason it felt more difficult to talk about it. Tom had decided not to tell it firstly, only because the simple thought of it happening again gave him shivers of fear.  
He was regretting that decision now, though.

'Tom?' Danny's tone was soft, and Tom was able to decode the fear in his voice. 'You didn't tell us everything, did you?' Tom slowly shook his head.

'There was one night.' He looked down, feeling everyone's eyes staring at him.  
'I woke up, after the dream with Lilith. I... I couldn't move. I mean, literally could not move anything except my eyes. I was able to look around my room, so I was awake, but I tried to get up or roll around and my body just did not move.'

'Sleep paralisis.' Lori mumbled. 'Did you hear strange noises or any voice?'  
Danny, Harry and Dougie were staring at Tom, a look of surprise mixed with terror on their faces, while Fletch just looked interested.

'First, I started to smell smoke, coming from under the bed, and to hear that little sound things do when they burn. I even tried to get up, bas I thought the house was on fire. Then I heard screams. I think they were Lilith's, it sounded like a girl yelling, just utterly terrified.' Tom finished his explanation.

'Where were the screams coming from?' Harry asked.

'From under my bed.'

'But like, inside the room?'

'Not really. Maybe in the room right under mine, I don't know.'

'What room is under Tom's room?' Lori questioned. Fletch seemed to tought for a little bit, and Harry tried to visualise the three floors of the house.

'That would be... Danny's wardrobe.' The manager concluded. Lori got up, grabbing the dress and the black book from the table, while the others looked at her, somehow cluelles.

'Well?!' She eyed them. 'Let's see that wardrobe then?'

'Oh, right.' Danny murmured as he and the others got up and followed Lori, Harry already showing her the way.

The group climbed the stairs and got in Danny's room as he apologised for the mess and opened the wardrobe, clicking the light interruptor and everyone got in. Lori observed carefully the walls and the floor, and in a matter of seconds, Tom and Harry had started doing the same, despite not really knowing what they were looking for.

Tom stopped in front of a side wall, analysing what looked like a hidden compartiment.

'I, I think I found something.' He said, and everyone gathered around him. Fletch traced the lines that defined a rectangle on the wall that was roughly the height of a guitar and a half, before slipping his indicator into a small hole.

'I think I might be able to open it.'

They heard a small click, and the hidden door opened. nothig could hve pepared them for what they saw next. Loud, terrified silence filled the room, as they looked at what was inside.

It was Lilith. _Literally_.

**LottiePoynterr: Wow, thank you so much! Hope you like this one :)**


	23. The Body

**A/N: I'm updating? On my birthday? Oh yeah, I forgot I don't have a social life… In other news, my mild writer's block was cured by McFly's álbum, Wonderland! I knew I could do it. Expect another chapter soon, and thank you for the reviews, especially LottiePoynterr, who has also helped me with ideas for prompt tables. Enjoy!**

**By the way, the new cover image is my drawing of Lilith. If you cover the left side of the drawing, the other part is Lilit when she was alive, the one that appeared as Tom's reflex in his computer. The left side of her face is her as a ghost, the one that Tom sees in his dreams. It's not finished yet, but I decided to post it anyway.**

Everyone stared, horrified expression on their faces, as they observed what had been Lilith's body.

Tom did not even care how it had survived all those years- 79, to be exact - but he knew one thing: he could try therapy, hypnosis, brain wash- but he would never forget the sight in front of him. It was a little deteriorated, but only as if Lilith had died just a day before, most of the skin was still there, the skinny limbs twisted, like she had curled up in a tiny ball, her face being definitely the worst. Her eyes were not there anymore, leaving two dark holes where they should be, and her mouth wide open in terror, leaving the four boys, Lori and Fletch imagining Lilith trying to breathe, and dying as a small intake of oxygen was her last.

The deep, scary silence was disturbed by a loud thud, and everyone looked behing them as Dougie fell on the floor unconscious. Harry immediately kneeled on the floor beside him, laying the blonde head on his tighs, as the manager, Lori, Tom and Danny made a circle around him.

'He's really sensitive, you know?' Harry stroked Dougie's hair lightly. 'This kind of things... it must be from the shock.' Lori nodded in agreement, and got up.

'Take him to his bed and let him sleep.' She said, furrowing her eyebrows as she concentrated. 'He will probably be out for a few hours, but it's the best for him.'

The other three nodded in silence, and Harry picked Dougie up, putting one arm under his knees, and the other holding his shoulders, Harry's left hand supporting his head, and got up, leaving the room with Tom and Danny behind him.

'What about now?' Fletch asked Lori when they were alone in the room. He closed the small compartimente where Lilith was with a quick, angry slap, and paced around the room nervously.

'I suggest you go home and rest too, Mr Fletcher.' Lori replied. 'We found her body, and, as I said before, we have to get rid of everything that links Lilith to this dimention.'

'And how exactly do we get rid of her body?'

'Not only her body, but also everything we find that is hers. So that means the body, the dress and the black book.' She explained. 'And we burn it, of course. Then we put the ashes away, far away.' Lori looked even more nervous than the manager, and could not even look at him while she talked, her breaths fast and deep.

'When do we do that? Tomorrow? Is there any specific date to... burn bodies, dresses and diaries to get of a ghost?' Lori shook her head at Fletch's question.

'Tonight.' And Fletch only nodded, because he knew it had to be as soon as possible.

They had to kill Lilith, forever.

**_19th_ _August_**,**_ 2003, 10:20pm: Evergreen Woods_**

_It was abnormally cold for a summer night, as if the world knew what was going to happen that night. The two items- the dress and the book- and Lilith's body, covered in a white blanket were lying in the middle of the floor, some mud already staining the blue silk of the slightly burnt dress._

_Tom took the two messages written in what he had assumed to be Lilith's curly calighraphy out of his pocket and plced them on the top of the book. He sat down on the soil, his fists clenched in determination. He was ready to do it._

_Danny glanced at Tom and made a comforting smile for his friend, even though he was screaming inside, not wanting to admit he was dead scared that something went wrong._

_Dougie watched as Tom put the two pieces of paper in the pile of objects, and almost immediately curled up against Harry's arm, shutting his eyes in fear._

_Harry felt Dougis'a body against him, and put an arm around his shoulders, whisperin to his friend that everything would be okay, even if he was not so sure._

_Lori asked Fletch for his lighter, and he passed it to her with a shaking hand. She placed the lighter close to the book and everyone watched, slightly hypnotised by the fire, as it spreaded, firstly by the black cover, and then invading the old paper inside._

**19th August, 2003, 3:17pm**

Fletch and Lori had gone home after telling them to rest, as they were 'in for a rough night', as the manager had put it.

Dougie was lying in his bed, with Harry beside him, half lying, half sitting in the bed, an arm around Dougie's shoulders.

Danny was also taking a nap in the end of Dougie's bed, curled up in a tight ball, and Tom could only wonder how he could feel comfortable in that position, but it was Danny after all, and he should be used to his weird manners.

Tom was sat in a bean bag that he had brought from the music room to Dougie's, not wanting to leave his friends alone, his lyric book on his hand and Lilith's black book on his lap.

He could not help but notice how similar the two books were. They had roughly the same size and the cover was almost the same.

He had assumed a long time ago that Lilith's black book, had been, in fact, her diary. Tom had observed carefully the blank pages and noticed there was definitely something written in there, but it was invisible, like it had been written with a pencil, but erased at some point.

Tom's lyric book was where he wrote his songs, but the pages were mde of a thick pper, ideal for drawing, which Tm also loved to do. That was the reason why the pages were filled with song lyrics with Tom's doodles decorating the letters in the whole page, making the diary a small reflex of Tom himself.

**LottiePoynterr: Thank you, hopefully we'll see more of Dougie in the next chapter, I have some stuff in mind.**

**deeplyinloves: Yes, that was my point, the freakiest the better. Glad you liked it, hope you enjoy this one :)**


	24. The Flames

**A/N: Hello! Thank you for the reviews on the last chapter. School must start in a few weeks for me, but I'll try and get this story finished by then. I apologize for any grammar mistakes, but I got an iPad mini for my birthday last Thursday, and I've been writing on it, and, unlike my computer, it does not have spell check. So if something does not make sense for you, just PM me or something. But sorry about that anyway. Enjoy!**

The flames soon enough invaded the dress and the white blanket around the body, and it had only taken about five minutes for everything to turn into ashes. Lori grabbed a water bottle from her bag and poured the liquid over the gray powder that used to be a book, a dress and the remains of a body.

'Tom, no!'

It all happened very fast: in one second, the water was mixing itself with the ashes and the soil, and in the other, a strong blow of wind threw Tom backwards, making him fly for a few moments, him hit a tree, and lose consciousness.

Danny ran to the tree where his friend had been thrown against, not even making sure Harry and Dougie were following him. His head was already spinning, and he felt sick, but continued running to his friend, ignoring how weak his body was, only a few days after an ugly fall of the stairs. The only sound sound he heard was his feet hitting the ground with every step, and the strong wind blowing in his ears as he run.

Falling on his knees next to Tom, he glanced at Dougie and Harry, only a few meters away from them, the two boys crouching too around his injured friend. Danny searched Tom's head for cuts or bumps, finding a huge one in the back of his head. As he felt his throat closing with fear, making him hyperventilate, he looked for a pulse.

'Does he...' Harry could not even end the sentence, tears already running down his cheeks. Dougie was already sobbing, and Danny would soon start too.

'It's weak, but it is there.' Danny replied. 'Call an abulance! Oh, where the hell is Fletch?!'

'Lori said they would meet us later, they had to finish something.' Harry placed the phone against his ear after dialing the numbers. 'Hello? My friend is uncounscious... We are in Evergreen Forrest... We can turn on our lanterns...'

Danny looked around. Lori and Fletch could finally be seen in the distance, running towards them. He buried his head in his hands and finally let the tears flow through his face, just as a light rain fell from the sky.

**_19th August, 2003, 10:05pm_**

'I'm so scared.' Dougie murmured against Harry's shoulder.

Harry looked out of the car window and sighed. There was not really a point anymore in trying to look strong. He was exhausted, and could not fake anything anymore. Turning his gaze back to Dougie, he pulled him closer.

'Me too, Dougs. Me too.' He took a deep breath. 'I just want this to be over.

**_19th August 2003, 10:26pm_**

The pain had stopped after a few seconds. Tom did not feel the ground under his feet anymore, and everything around him was black.

Except...

There was a small light, slowly coming closer to him. He wanted to follow it, but he couldn't. The black was soon replaced by the white light, as he was engulfed by it.

'_Lilith_!'

Tom looked around, and found himself in what looked like a kitchen. A kitchen in flames, that spreaded through the curtains and soon set the walls in fire too. But for some reason, Tom was not scared. He just observed, as if he was just watching a movie.

'Lilith! I can't move!'

The same high pitched voice came from a girl, who was tied to a chair. She had light blonde hair, pale skin, and brown eyes.

And, of course, was in panic, watching the fire slowly reaching the chair she was tied to.

Tom's mind became clearer, and he ran to help the girl untie herself from the chair. His hand touched the rope that joined her thin wrists, but it trepassed it.

He tried to touch the girl's shoulders, but he couldn't. His hand simply appeared in the other side, going through her chest, and she did not seem very bothered by it, ignoring him.

_She was not seeing him._

_She was not feeling him._

Tom was a mere ghost in there, stuck in his own house, or the house that had existed seventy nine years before.

_He could not do anything_.

**A/N (2): LottiePoynterr, deeplyinloves, FLOYNTERXxx, Galaxy-Defending-Hopeful (and other regular reviewers), please don't hate me for hurting Tom!**

**mcflybustedsonofdork: Here you go, more Pudd for you! But there'll be more next chapter. Thanks for reviewing :)**


	25. The Concern

**A/N: Hi! Hope you all liked last chapter, this one is ore like a filler kind of thing, sorry about that, but more things will happen in the next ones. Thanks to everyone that reviewed, it means a lot to me. Enjoy :)**

_**19th August, 2003, 11:12pm**_

Danny hugged his knees against his chest as he sobbed, all curled up in the chair of the waiting room in the hospital. His head was buried in Harry's chest, who was also crying and offering his tighs as a pillow for a sleeping Dougie.

Fletch had told Lori to go home, and she did, although reluntantly. She had created some kind of bond with the boys over the few days she had been with them.

But when the manager asked Danny, Dougie and Harry to do the same, telling them he would stay the night in the hospital and call them when when he had news about Tom's state, but they refused and insisted to stay. The waiting room was not very full, and some nurses passing by glared them with pity, bringing some blankets and pillows for the three boys.

Fletch came back to the chair next to Danny, who immediately looked up at him with red eyes. The manager shook his head, and sighed.

'No news yet, boys. They won't tell us anything either, they can only inform family members.'

'Can-can't we pretend we are t-their cousins or something?' Harry asked, not even caring about wiping his face anymore, his whole body shaking.

'I don't really know, Harry. He got here thirty minutes ago, they probably don't have much to say yet.'

'But-but, but he'll be o-okay, right?' Danny cried. 'He's, he's got to be okay... Tom...no...' The boy buried his head in his knees once again and sobbed harder.

'Should we call his parents?' Harry asked, occasionally glancing at Dougie. Danny shook his head, looking up at him.

'They're on holiday now.' He said. 'And I don't have their numbers.' Fletch nodded.

'We'll see how his conditions turns out to be and we manage to call them if necessary.'

'We should call Giovanna though.' Danny stated, already trying to think of ways to calm her down when they talked to her.

'Could you do that, Danny? It would be good for him...' Danny nodded and picked up his phone, hoping for the best.

_**19th August, 2003, 10:31pm**_

Tom tried to ignore the terrified screams of the girl, since he could do nothing, and got out of the kitchen, making his way to a slightly familiar stairway. He climbed the stairs, watching as thevgrey smoke filled each division, and stopped when he reached the first floor. The screams in the kitchen had died down, as the girl had probably sufocated or been burnt to death.

_'Get me out of here! Please, someone help me!_' Soon another voice filled the air, sounding a little bit more panicked than the previous one, and seemed to come from one of the rooms on the first floor.

'Heeelp, please, please!'

Tom followed the voice, as it seemed to get more and more desperate. He got in one room and looked around.

Only the smoke had reached the division, the fire had not invaded it yet. It was definitely a room that belonged to a girl. The bed clothing was all light pink with white pillows, and there were some porcelain dolls piled up in a corner.

By now, the screams had stopped, and Tom could only hear muffled sobs. In the bedside table, Tom recognised the family portrait he had seen in the black book. The girl in the kitchen was Rose Catchpole, Lilith's sister.

So the desperate screams coming from the walk in wardrobe (that Tom knew to be existent) were from Lilith herself.

**_19th August, 2003, 10:25pm_**

_'Mr Fletcher!'_

_'Lori, I have to go help them out!' He snapped back. 'Tom might be seriously injured!' The manager was going to run to where Tom was, but Lori's hand grabbed his arm._

_'They'll know what to do. He needs an ambulance, and there is nothing we can do for now unless calling one, which they will do.'_

_'But Lori, you have to let me-'_

_'This ghost isn't dead yet.' She said in a determined voice. 'And Mr Fletch, I'm sure you prefer an injured musician to four dead ones. So, please, help me burn these ashes and we'll throw them to the river after that.'_

_**19th August, 2003, 11:27pm**_

'Oh my God, is he okay? Tell me Tom's okay!' Giovanna arrived to the hospital about twenty minutes after Danny called her, and immediately found thecthree boys and the manager slumped in the chairs in the middle of the waiting room.

Harry shook his head.

'They won't tell us anything. We honestly have no idea how he is.'

Giovanna's lips turned to a tight line as she sat next to Danny, who had fallen asleep, trying to hold the tears in.

'Harry?' She called in a soft voice. He looked at her.

'Yeah?'

'Could you explain how did this all happen?' Her tone was strained now. after about two months of dealing with Tom having a distant, weird behaviour, she was sure something out of the ordinary was up. Harry sighed.

'It's a long story, Giovanna.' Fletch warned her, with a sympathetic half smile. She shrugged.

'Well, it's not like I have something more important to do anyway, is it?'

**Galaxy-Defending-Hopeful: Well, you'll have to see about that later! I've already decided what to do with Tom, it will be on one of the next chapters. Thanks for reviewing :D**

**deeplyinloves: Yess! Stories get interesting when characters are in danger, so... And everything that is happening to Tom in the house in flames will be clearer next chapter, okay? Thanks for your review and enjoy this chapter :)**


	26. The Bad News

**A/N: Five reviews! I almost could not believe it, thank you all so much. I don't know if any of you do this, but, while I am writing, I like to listen to music, just for inspiration and to get in the mood. The ones I used to write this were '_I Don't Wanna Go_' and '_Slow It Down_' by The Lumineers. So you can try to listen to them while you read this, if you want, they're really good. Enjoy this chapter ;)**

Tom felt himself being engulfed in the dark once again.

His head was pounding, but he did not feel his body weight.

'_Thomas_?'

He heard a voice. It was soft, but it made him wince. Tom felt it sounded too sweet to be good.

'I know you are hearing me.'

His chest tightened, and it got hard to breathe. The fear he felt was unbelievable, but something inside him urged him to answer. The words could not leave his mouth when he tried to speak. But he understood he had been heard when the voice spoke again.

'Yes, I am exactly who you think it is. Who else could it be?' Lilith sounded angry, talking really fast, her tone cold. 'You killed me!' She yelled, and Tom wanted to cover his ears, the loudness hurting his ear drums. 'Are you happy now?! You killed me!'

Tom felt cold air hitting his face, and the voice screaming directly to his ears.

'Do you know why I chose you?' She hissed. 'You were so innocent. So willing to protect everyone around you. And so, so sensitive. I know you would be scared. I knew you would want your friends safe, and you would eventually do what I wanted, let yourself be a puppet in my hands.'

Tears left Tom's eyes, as the sensation of fear and losing his friends appeared again. He still felt Lilith's presence around him, so real, so powerful.

'And, of course, it was fun. So fun to watch your personality change as you closed yourself more and more, day by day. To watch you cry in your room because you were scared of me, because you did not know what was happening.'

Slowly, Tom could feel his body again, and the voice got distant.

'I may be out of your life, but never out of your mind.'

**_20th August, 2003, 2:03am_**

'Danny?'

Dougie lightly shook his shoulders, and Danny woke up, wincing at how much his head hurt from crying, his whole body sore because of the latest events.

In front of them, there was a doctor. He sat up straighter immediately.

'How is he? Is he alright? The doctor glanced at the filecase in his hand before looking at the group.

'He sustained some serious head trauma, as well as some bad bruising in his back and shoulders. The scans showed light brain swelling aswell. Thomas is stable, but we aren't sure when he will wake up.' He sighed. 'It's a waiting game from now on.'

'So that means...' Giovanna started, her eyes filling with tears. The doctor nodded solemny.

'It could take hours, days, weeks, or even years.' He said. 'I'm sorry.'

Giovanna broke down sobbing on Danny's shoulder, who hugged her, crying too. Dougie, also crying, buried his head on Harry's shoulder, seeking comfort. And Harry just looked at nowhere, his eyes unfocused, biting his lip as he hugged Dougie back.

Fletch had his head in his hands, but when the doctor was getting ready to leave, he called him.

'When can we see him?' The manager's voice was shaking.

'We are just finishing some tests, and you should be able to visit in about half an hour.' The doctor answered before walking towards the door of the waiting room, going to another section of the hospital.

_**20th August, 2003, 3:43am**_

'He's strong, you know? He will wake up soon, I am sure.'

Harry didn't know anymore.

Giovanna was sitting on a chair next to Tom's bed, one hand enclosing his and the other stroking his blonde hair. She was naturaly pretty, but in a matter of hours, her tanned skin had adquired a pale shade, she had dark bags under her eyes, which were red and puffy, her hair was messed up and her voice came out strained and hoarse.

Tom did not look much better either. Lying in the white hospital bed, looking small and frail, his pale face contrasting with the dark bruises on his shoulders and forearms that were visible coming out of the hospital gown. Tubes were shoved down his throat, various needles connected to his arms, and an emotionless expression on his face as he slept, God knew for how long.

They had been there for more than an hour, and some nurses had got in the room and noticed the physical state of Dougie and Danny, setting up a sofa kind of thing that was big enough for two of them, and the two youngest boys were currently sleeping under Harry's jacket.

Fletch had gone home, after Harry and Giovanna persuaded him. He accepted to go, just to take a shower and get a few hours of sleep, after the boys promised to go back to the band house when he got back.

Harry didn't know how much he could take. The white lights were depressing and made his head ache more. For the days they had been figuring out the whole situation with Lilith, it hadn't been difficult to ignore his pneumonia. Now, with his best friend in actual danger in a hospital bed, after a rough night, the scariest moment of his life, it all came back. His whole body ached, and he was pretty sure he had a fever. But he did not really care about it. His illness was nothing compared to Tom's current condition. So he did what he did the best and returned to being the strong one.

'Yeah, he will. Tom will wake up when he's ready.'

**Galaxy-Defending-Hopeful: Sorry if this one makes you cry more... Here it is! Thanks for reviewing :)**

**TheMcVamps: Thanks for pointing that out! Silly iPad mini... hope you're enjoying this by the way :D**

**deeplyinloves: I love writing sensitive!Danny. I just picture him as he was in the 'You've Got a Friend' video when he was crying, and write about it in my stories. Thanks for reviewing, and enjoy this chapter ;)**

**ILikeToSneeze: Wow. I mean, really? Thank you so much, it's not something I hear everyday. There are loads of great authors and amazing stories in the JML tag though. Glad you're enjoying this, new reviewers are always welcome :)**

**LottiePoynterr: We both know Dougie is sensitive like that, it seemed something he would do xD More 'vulnerable Dougieness' will be included in the next chapter if possible, haha! Thanks for reviewing and being so lovely ;)**


	27. The Faith

**A/N: Hello there! Thank you so, so much for 53 reviews! Holy crapattoni! I was like, fangirling for an hour! And I guess that is it. Replies in the end of the chapter, as always. Enjoy;)**

**_20th August, 2003, 1:34pm_**

Fifteen hours since Tom's accident.

Fifteen hours, and barely anything had changed.

Fletch had arrived to the hospital at about eight and a half, and made the boys and Giovanna go home.

Dougie lay awake in his bed, not being able to sleep. Partly, because of the nagging headache he had. And, obviously, because one of his best friends was in a coma.  
The blinds in his rooms were closed, as he could not stand the Summer sun. In his opinion, the current weather did not fit his emotional state: a storm, with rain and lightning would do.

Tom was their leader. The one who started everything. The three of them would be lost without him, and, even though some jokes were made about him behaving like their mothers, Dougie, Harry and Danny needed it. Being the oldest, and the most responsible of the group, Tom was in charge of cooking, solving problems and make sure everything was fine in the band house. He was also one of the most creative people Dougie had ever met, being great at song writing, singing, playing instruments, drawing, painting, acting, and most of the things that envolved Art and creativity. And also so much more than that. Tom was the one they would turn to if they needed to talk about something or if they needed help. Dougie recalled, when Lilith had managed to hurt them all, how Tom had been able to handle the situation and take care of them so well.

But Dougie felt, most of all, powerless. There was absolutely nothing he could do unless wait and hope for anything to turn out okay.

'Dougie?'

Harry was at the door, a lost look across his face, as if asking if he could walk further into the room.

'Yeah?'

'I am going to make tea.' Harry said. 'Do you want some?' Dougie shook his head.

'No, thanks.' He replied. 'Ask Danny, he might need some.' Harry sighed, and sat on Dougie's bed.

'I already did. He won't get out of his room, he's just curled up in himself, looking at the wall. He's not even crying anymore, it's like he isn't even there.'

'Danny and Tom are really close.' Dougie said. 'If he doesn't make it...' The blonde's voice came out more like a strangled sob, and Harry pulled him close, hugging him.

'Faith, Dougie. If we do not have it, we have nothing.'

'Danny, you have to get out of bed.' Dougie had agreed to go with Harry to Danny's room, to convince him to at least drink a bit of tea, as he refused to eat anything, or to get out of bed and distract himself. It did not seem to be working though.

Danny stayed in the same position, his head buried on the pillow. At least he was not facing the wall anymore.

'Don't wanna.' His voice came out muffled. Harry sat on the bed beside him and pulled the red blanket off his friend, feeling somewhat glad when he saw he was not naked, but at least wearing boxers.

'Come on.' Harry insisted. 'Just a bit of tea. You will feel so much better.' Danny took his head out of the pillow for a moment, glaring at Harry.

'The _only_ thing that is going to make me better is Tom waking up.' He hissed. 'So if you two don't mind...' He returned to his position, lying on his stomach.

'Tom would not want that, Danny. He would want us to-'

'Shut up! Shut up!' Danny sat up abruptly, yelling. 'Don't talk like that, he's not dead!'

'Danny, calm down-' Dougie's voice was shaking, but Harry did not let him talk.

'Well, he isn't here, is he? He's in a _fucking_ coma, Danny! Just accept that!' Harry's face was red, and he looked furious, but his voice was hoarse and cracked.

'But he will wake up.' Danny's tone was dangerously low, Harry also noticed he was clenching his fists. Shaking his head, the drummer sat down next to Dougie.

'He will, Danny. I'm just- just trying to deal with this right now.' He sighed. Danny attempted a weak smile.

'You're doing it well, mate. I'm sorry.'

'We're all just really stressed, aren't we?' Harry took a deep breath. He got up and walked to Danny's desk, where he had left the tray with the mugs of tea, bringing one, and handing it to Danny, who accepted it.

'This is killing me.' Danny said after taking a sip of his tea. Dougie turned to him.

'You're not the only one, Dan.'

**_20th August, 2003, 5:16pm_**

Tom suddenly felt real again. He could sense his eyelids blackening his vision, he felt his torso, his back, which was starting to hurt uncomfortably, his legs half tangled in thin sheets.

And his hands. His left hand was being envolved by other hand. He tried to open his eyes, but he couldn't.

'_I don't know if you are even listening_.'

A voice. A hoarse, deep voice, entirely familiar. It was undoubtedly Danny.

'The nurse said it would help making you better. You know, talking to you and stuff.' It was not normal Danny though. The Danny he was listening to sounded horribly tired and broken.

'Dan, it's okay.' It was Harry this time, and Tom could almost imagine him glancing at Danny, as he hugged Dougie, like they used to when they watched movies in the living room.

'Things are so messed up right now, Tom.' Danny continued, and tightened his grip in Tom's hand. 'We need you here. You have to wake up. Lilith died forever, she won't ever bother us again.'

Tom felt another hand on his right forearm. A softer, also colder hand.

'Now we can be an awesome band.' Dougie's shy voice filled his ears. 'We will tour with Busted, and eventually on our own. And we'll live happily in our band house, and have the time of our lives.'

'But you are going to be there. You will be there to laugh with us about stupid jokes, about the winderful times we will have playing shows, we will write killer songs... We'll be there for each other, because we are best friends.'

Tom concentrated all his effort in squeezing Danny's hand. He needed to do it.

'Did he...he just...'

'Please wake up. Please.'

_Tom opened his eyes_.

**ILikeToSneeze: Yeah, I know. She is kind of like one of those creepy children in horror movies. Glad you are enjoying this :D**

**LottiePoynterr: We are talking about Dougie. Dougie who has pictures on the Internet of him unconscious on a hospital bed after taking a flu jab ( haha, I am like that too, I faint for the smallest things (my psycho Geometry teacher was yelling at me and I fainted after screaming back at him)). So, yeah, I think he would definitely faint if he saw a corpse xD Hope you like this chapter, and thanks for reviewing ;)**

**TheMcVamps: Well, enjoy this chapter, and thank you for reviewing :)**

**deeplyinloves: Please do! You write so amazingly, I think I would...I don't even know, but it would be SO awesome if you tried to write sensitive!Danny. If you really do it and you need help, you can always PM me :) When I saw him cry in the video, I felt like crying too :'( thanks for reviewing, enjoy this one ;D**


	28. The Psychosis

**A/N: Hello! Hope you all liked last chapter, and YAY, Tom woke up! Here's a kind of short chapter, and I am sorry about that. I'll start 11th grade in a week (oh God!), but I should be able to update with the same frequency. Enjoy ;)**

After Tom opened his eyes, and in just a few seconds, the room was invaded by doctors and nurses, telling them to go outside, as more of them got in to check on him and do more exams.

Harry, Dougie and Danny smiled as they shuffled out of the room: Tom was going to be okay.

'Call Gi! Call her right now!' Danny pulled Harry's shoulder as he screamed, a wide grin plastered on his face, as soon as they got to the hospital cafeteria. Harry took his phone out of his pocket.

'I'll get Fletch, you call her.' He said as he dialed the number, and moved to a corner, to get away from the noise. Danny did the same, taking Dougie to a table next to window, and put his phone on loud speaker.

'Danny?' Gi's tired voice sounded from the other line. The brunnete glanced mischeviously at Dougie, who seemed to understand the other's language, and gave a short nod as an answer.

'TOM WOKE UP, HE'S GOING TO BE OKAY!' The two yelled at the device, bursting out laughing right after.

'Yes! Oh my God, that is so good!' A smile could be heard in her voice. 'I'll be there in ten minutes.'

'Ok, give us a call when you arrive.' Danny hung up, and Harry arrived to the table. Danny and Dougie threw themselves at him, making a group hug, not even caring about the ther people around them, giving friendship a whole new perspective.

**_21th August, 2003, 6:34pm_**

'Do you...um...remember anything, Tom?'

The exams had been done, and Tom's head seemed fine, apart from a moderare concussion, and the boys and Giovanna had been allowed to visit him in the room for a little while.

Tom sighed and looked down upon hearing the question. Harry squeezed his shoulder comfortingly.

'We don't want to pressure you, mate, we really don't...but we need to know.' Gi took Tom's hand in hers. Danny shook his head.

'If you don't want to-'

'I remember everything.' Tom blurted out. 'I remember you guys talking to me too. When I was in the coma.' He took a deep breath, remembering seeing Lilith, Rose, and the house on fire, and pondering in whether to tell the others or not. 'But let's not talk about it, please. It's over, right?'

'Right.' Giovanna smiled.

'When can I go home?'

**_21th August, 2003, 5:58pm_**

'I think I discovered something rather interesting, Mr Fletcher.' Lori sat down on the sofa and took a filecase out of her bag.

'What is it?'

'Yesterday, I remembered one thing we were forgetting in the whole situation: Marie Hills.' She said. 'Lilith wanted to kill her so she could have her body, so she is obviously a crucial element in the investigation we made about this. I think it was kind of dumb from us not to get to know more about her.'

But, Lori, we did things right? I mean, Lilith is permanently dead?'

'Yes, that's not what I meant. This-' She pointed to the filecase. '-is just a little of extra information. It just helps us to understand everything better.'

'Alright then.'  
'I must say I am a very sensitive person, and, after what happened to Tom, it was hard for me to stay at home and do nothing. I had to distract myself. And then I remembered Marie Hills. After visiting Tom yesterday in the hospital, I sneaked into the staff room-'

'You sneaked into the staff room?!'

'Yes, my best friend, Luke, he is a doctor and works there. I actually told him about the whole thing with Lilith, and I told him about Tom. Tom had told me that Marie was in that hospital. The moment I was going to ask to check her files, I remembered: that hospital exists since 1912. Of course, I thought the chances of it happening were minimal, if not inexistent, but there could be files containing Lilith's medical history. I asked him about it, and he said he would try and send me an email later.' Lori took a few papers out of the filecase. 'I got this email, he said files this old should have been destroyed long ago. These are scanned files, from about 1960. So probably copies from what they considered old archives at the a look.'

Fletch took about five minutes to read some documents related to Lilith's health, stopping near the end, his face pale, and his eyes wide open in fear and surprise.

'Does this mean she...'

'Like her parents, she had schizophrenia. She had hallucinations and heard voices.' Lori confered.

'It also says here she had double personality? What does this mean?' Fletch continued to read the files.

'Luke told me about that. There are cases of double personality combined with child psychosis that lead the patient to harm himself, having two personalities in conflict: the one who is harming, and the one who is telling the other to stop.' She said. 'There is a possibility that the fire was caused by her, and she closed herself in that compartiment. She did what one of the personalities made her do.'

**LottiePoynterr: You haven't seen the picture?! I'll PM you tomorrow with the link, you have to see it! It was actually on Tom's birthday in 2012... Anyway, I'll send it later ;) Dougie's headache... Well, I hadn't got anything planned for it actually, BUT, you just gave me inspiration for a little something you may be able to read in a few weeks/months(?), so THANK YOU SO MUCH. Glad you are still liking this :)**

**ILikeToSneeze: Wow, thanks, that's really sweet :) (awesome pen name, by the way, hope to read something from you soon)**

**deeplyinloves: You have absolutely no idea of how much I am dying to read you try of sensitive!Danny. And, sure, just PM me whenever you want, I check my Inbox almost everyday ;) enjoy this chapter!**


	29. The Girl

**A/N: Hi everyone! So, I have finally started school, sorry for the late update and the small microscopic chapter, but I didn't want to leave with nothing until the weekend. I have been thinking about doing more artwork for this story, so, whenever I have it done, I can give you the Tumblr link to it. Enjoy the chapter ;)**

**ATTENTION: To the people who wanted to see that picture I told LottiePoynterr about (and I forgot to sent by the way, sorry), here it is! I posted it on my Tumblr, I'll leave the link (and don't worry, you'll find it right away, because I barely post anything in that Tumblr). **

**_22th August, 2003, 4:27pm_**

Tom was bored.

He had not exactly expected his stay in the hospital to be fun, but with Danny, Harry and Dougie at home resting (Fletch's orders), and the dull, nagging pain in his back and shoulders, he wanted to be anywhere but in that bed.

Rolling over, he placed his right ear against the pillow and tried to relax. In just a few days, he would be back to the band house, and soon they would start recording the album and rehearsing for the tour, since most songs were almost finished. Therefore, he had all reasons to be happy, right? Besides, now that Giovanna knew all about what had been happening to him, their relationship would be back to what it was in no time.

But Tom could not sleep anymore, and every position was uncomfortable for him. Lying on his back again, he glanced at a grey rectangle on the ceiling. It had bars on it, and, seeing light through them, Tom assumed it came from the room above his.

Of course, Tom's brain stopped working when he spotted two big blue eyes, staring at him from behind the bars.

'Nurse! Nurse!' Tom was finally able to call out, after about ten seconds of being paralysed in fear.

Feeling like his heart would come out from his mouth, he could't believe it. It was too scary, too horrible.

And those blue eyes looked so much like Lilith's.

'What is wrong?' A nurse had got in the room, and, after hearing his desperante calls, she started checking his temperature and heart beat. ToM was not really sure of what to say.

'I... Think that...' Tom sighed, two fingers pinching the bridge of his nose, as he took deep breaths. 'Look, this is going to sound a bit strange, but I saw someone looking at me from over there.' He pointed to the grey grill, somewhat fearing the reaction of the nurse, and unsure he had done the right thing. The nurse knitted her eyebrows together, making Tom regret having called her for a brief moment.

'This is room 555, isn't it?' She asked Tom, who nodded.

'I think so, yeah.' She lightly smiled at him, adjusting the blankets around his shoulders.

'Don't worry, dear, it's nothing you have to worry about.' She left, leaving Tom extremely confused. But, for some reason less worried.

And that was how he was able to sleep for a while.

**_21th August, 2003, 6:03pm_**

'Do you think we should tell them?'

Fletch seemed to think for a moment, and made a worried glance towards Lori.

'Honestly? No.' He replied. 'You just told me that, and, well, the whole situation is enough scary as it is. Telling them Lilith had psychologic problems will only disturb them more than they are now.' Lori nodded.

'So, we'll keep this a secret, right? For the boys' sake.' Fletch agreed.

'For the boys' sake.'

22th August, 2003, 6:21pm

Tom had just woken up, and had not opened his eyes yet, but he could sense someone else in the room with him.

Concentrating, he found out he could feel someone breathing against his shoulder. He was right.

Tom opened his eyes.

And there was Lilith, next to him, a light smile on her face, her blue eyes staring, seeing through him.

'Hey, don't freak out.' The girl gently grabbed Tom's wrist. 'I don't think we met each other properly. I'm Marie. Marie Hills.' She said, and Tom felt relief wash over him.

'I'm Tom.' He replied. 'Why are you here?'

'A nurse came to my room earlier And told me you had seen me. Sorry if I scared you a while ago when I was seeing through the bars over there. You just seemed...familiar.'

'It's okay.'

'Then I asked her if I could come down to apologize, and she said yes.' Marie explained. 'So here I am. Sorry.'

After a quick silence, Marie took a deep breath.

'You used to see her too, didn't you?'

'Who?'

'Lilith.'

**ILikeToSneeze: Yes, please do that! especially because the JML tag always welcomes new stories! And thank you so much for reviewing, hope you like this chapter :D**


	30. The Headache

**A/N: This is the longest I have been without updating, and I am so sorry. Just, school started, and, well, eleventh grade isn't being very easy... But here I am again, and also sorry for the short crappy chapter. **

**Also, I forgot to leave the Tumblr where I posted the picture of Dougie, here it is: annii97 (then you add the tumblr . com). **

**Enjoy!**

Tom stared at her, looking perplex.

'Y-you saw her too?' He stuttered. Marie nodded, her expression reflecting sympathy.

'Dreams and voices. She was always telling me I would have to die.' She confessed. 'The worst were the dreams. I saw her, and it looked like me at first, but then I felt like I was being ripped out of my body and I couldn't move, as I saw her going away.' Tom nodded, somewhat pitying the eleven year old.

'Well, she's gone now.' He reached out his hand to touch the girl's skinny shoulder, Marie next to him making his mind wander to his own sister Carrie.

Tom would definitely have some strained relationships to fix after getting out of the hospital.

**_23th August, 2003, 3:46am_**

Dougie groaned and rolled to his side, taking his bangs out of his eyes and clutching his head for a moment as he stumbled out of his bed.

The headache was dull, constant, and had started over two days before. The boy moved to the bathroom with small steps, moving as fast as his state would allow him, and found the aspirins inside the cabinets above the mirros, taking them with a swig of water.

Dougie dizzily got back to bed and tucked himself under the covers, wishing everything just went away.

**_23th August, 2003, 7:34am_**

Harry, Dougie, Danny and Tom were friends to a point where they were perfectly comfortable around each other in silence, without needing to talk.

In fact, there was not much talk to be done in hospital visits that had become frequent over the two previous days. And barely anyone feels like talking at all at seven in the morning, the beginning of the visiting hours at London Central.

Danny opened the door, and got in Tom's room along with Harry and Dougie, as a part of a new born routine, and sat on one of the chairs beside Tom, once more thankful for knowing he was just sleeping and not in a coma.

Dougie was in front of him, from the other side of the bed, with closed eyes, and was rubbing his temples, taking deep breaths, a slight frown on his face. Harry had fallen asleep with his head next to Tom's, in the pillow.

Danny focused again on Dougie, and realised how much he had seen him rubbing his temples like that, like he was in pain, over the previous days.

'Doug?' He whispered. 'You alright?'

'Head hurts. It's been like this since last ...day.' The blonde winced.

'Try to sleep for a little, like Harry over there. You'll be fine.' Danny advised. 'I'll watch over Tom here.'

Dougie sighed and leaned forward, resting next to Harry.

**_23th August, 2003, 9:03am_**

Harry was woken up by someone touching his hair. Rubbing his eyes, he stared at Tom's open eyes, and the blonde smiled cheekily.

'Morning Harry.'

'Did you wake me up?'  
'I was bored.' Tom pouted. 'Your visits suck. I am starting to think you only come here to sleep on purpose. Dan and Doug are sleeping too.' His tone was light and he had a trace of a smile on his face for the first time in weeks. Harry smiled back.

'Yeah...we're tired, I guess.' The drummer saw Tom sitting up straighter in the bed. 'What have you been doing, you know, when we're not here?'

'I had an interesting visit yesterday.'

'Who?'

'She might come back in a few hours.' Tom said, refearring to Marie, expecting Harry to be curious about it, but his friend simply nodded tiredly and yawned. Tom shook his head. 'I don't mind if you need to sleep.' He lay back down. 'I mean, I get to be on this bed the whole day, but you guys aren't fully recovered, yet you spend the days here, sitting on those chairs...I don't mind, really, just go back to sleep.'

Harry nodded gratefully, before resting his head on the wall behind him.

'Thanks.'

**_23th August, 2003, 5:29pm_**

'Do you have a three?' Danny asked Dougie, who shook his head and pinted to the pile of cards in the centre of the bed.

'Go fish.'

Danny groaned and took a card.

'Your turn, Harry.'

Just as Harry was going to ask Tom for a seven, there was a knock at the door. Tom grinned.

'Come in.'

The door opened.

Dougie flinched, and his head started to hurt more.

Danny's cards fell from his hands to the floor.

Harry's eyes widened.

'L-Lilith.'

**Guest: Mmm... Dear guest: sorry about the picture and everything! My head is a mess, really, and I easily forget things, haha! Thank you so much, I am so glad you're liking the story and my artwork. Also, everyone on this fandom agrees with you: Dougie is damn adorable ;)**

**ILikeToSneeze: Well, that was the whole point, I wanted him to be scared! Now it's the others' turn, haha! Thanks for reviewing :D**

**deeplyinloves: Maybe you'll find out next chapter! Sorry for not updating this. By the way, have you been thinking about your shot in sensitive!Danny? Don't want to put any pressure on you, but I am really looking forward to see it. Thank you so much for reviewing ;)**


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